Another Type of Alien Book 3: Rising From The Ashes
by Rapidfyrez
Summary: The shadow of Darkmont has left Jasper in ruins. The many Autobots and their allies have been separated, and the public's faith shaken. Megatron holds the planet Earth in his clawed servos. The Autobots have only one chance to set things right. But will they succeed? Megatron has an army of new powerful soldiers and a fortress on his side. The bots may have finally met their match.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Separated

_Darkmont, Nevada…_

Jasper Nevada lay in flaming ruin. The tiny town in the middle of nowhere was reduced to ash. Its many buildings were flamed engulfed husks, with inky black smoke rising from their remains high into the air. No living creature remained in the town. The town that once housed the Autobots and their many allies, human and other wise.

They had been charged with not only protecting that town, but the entirety of Earth. And in a single day, their entire mission had fallen apart. Their base was like Jasper itself. A flaming ruin, the mesa showed no signs of the inorganic inhabitants that once walked its halls.

The only sign of what might have been was a large clearing in the midst of rubble, with the Autobot insignia resting in the middle of it. It was no longer the proud symbol of hope and freedom for all sentient life though. Now it was but a ruined emblem, scorched and trashed by their enemy, the Decepticons.

In one fell swoop, using their organic allies as leverage, the Decepticons had managed to turn the tide on the Autobots. They had stolen the keys to restoring their own homeworld, Cybertron, and by extension, attempted to convert Earth into a second world of steel. Only through the quick thinking of the Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, were the Decepticons stopped.

And with it, the only hope of restoring Cybertron was destroyed. In its place, the only mark of that hope now rested on Earth. A towering spire of dark and twisted metal that towered over the remains of both the Autobot Base and Jasper. It's sickening shadow stretched across the ground, engulfing the Autobot base.

Taller than any structure the newly formed spire that was Darkmount stood as a testament to a fact the entire world now knew of. The Autobots were beaten, their army scattered, and their powerful allies captured and held prisoner by the Decepticons.

These facts were horrifying to the inhabitants of Earth. The Autobots and their allies were the first and _only _defense they had against the Decepticons. And now they had neither. The worst part was, the Decepticons were both aware of it. All of them, and in particular their leader.

The leader who now stood at the top of his newly formed spire. A massive platform resting between three pillars that continued to stretch into the air before coming together and forming a singular massive pillar. The area was wide and open, with no walls surrounding it. Only a single object was permanently seated on the platform. A throne for which the massive Decepticon could seat himself and look over the new world he ruled.

The leader of the Decepticons, Megatron, was not using the throne at the moment though. Instead, he was standing at the edge of the platform looking over the ruined landscape before him. His scarred face was twisted into a demented smile, exposing his many sharpened denta. His large silver forearms were crossed behind his back and Megatron himself was deep in thought.

For nearly a full year the Autobots had beaten his forces back. No matter what he tried, the Autobots managed to beat his own forces within an inch of their lives. Megatron had tried tactic after tactic, but they always failed. It was beyond infuriating that the handful of Autobot soldiers managed to fend off his army of Decepticon soldiers.

But Megatron knew the true source of their many victories. The allies that had changed the tide of battle in their favor. The Kryptonians, both of them. Appearing only a handful of weeks after Megatron returned to his Decepticons, the Kryptonians were stronger, faster, and more durable than any soldier under his command.

And they had used this feature to their advantage. Especially the boy, he had been the true thorn in Megatrons side. He was on almost every mission and managed to be the key element that turned the tide of every engagement. He was the Autobots secret weapon that had nearly made Megatron tear his non-existent hair out of his chrome skull.

Such suffering had lasted nearly a year. And then Megatron gained control of the Omega Lock and everything changed. Darkmont now stood where the Autobots had once resided, and his forces were stronger than ever before. Through manipulating the Omega Lock, the device meant to restore Cybertron, Megatron had created a new breed of drone.

Creatures stronger, faster, and deadlier than any other force Megatron had commanded, save his most vicious troops. And they had defeated the Kryptonians in a single engagement. Now the aliens were under his control, and they would never escape.

Megatron let out a sinister chuckle at the thought, "Truly this has been my greatest triumph. The defeat of the Autobots and the capture of their allies."

"If that put you in a good mood, Lord Megatron, prepare for me to make it even better!"

The silver warlord turned to see a red mech walking onto the platform with a small escort of Vehicons behind him, "We just finished scavenging the remains of the Autobot base, my liege. We found quite the haul."

Megatron arched an optic ridge, "Oh really? And what, pray tell, did you find Knockout?"

The local medic, doctor, and interrogator, Knockout was a prissy mech with an extensive knowledge of Cybertronian biology. He was also a major kiss aft who was constantly trying to get on Megatron's good side. Sadly, the mech was not the most conniving soldier under Megatron's command. Were he not one of the only three true Cybertronians under his command, Megatron wouldn't put up with him at all.

But alas, he was, and so Megatron humored the con. Something Knockout seemed either oblivious to, or happy to ignore. Demonstrated quite thoroughly when he motioned for the Vehicons to stop.

With a flourish of his servos, Knockout grabbed something being held by four Vehicons on either side of the object, and hefted it up for Megatron to see, "May I present, the Forge of Solus Prime."

What Knockout held in his clawed servos was a large golden hammer. It was easily taller than Knockout was, with a massive hammer attached to an equally long handle. It was intricately and beautifully crafted, appearing as beautiful as it was functional.

Megatron smirked and grabbed the hammer, lifting it from Knockouts clawed servos, "It would seem the Autobots forgot one of their greatest advantages, in their hurry to abandon the base."

The con warlord then frowned, "Without the arm of a Prime though, I cannot wield it as anything more than an oversized hammer." he set the tool down with a heavy thud. For a brief time, Megatron managed to overcome the condition of being a Prime that came with wielding the Forge. But recent events had left the warlord disarmed and thus, unable to wield it properly.

Still, keeping it out of the hands of the Autobots was advantage enough for now. Megatron gestured for Knockout to continue, which he did with great gusto. What came next was a group of Vehicons carrying precariously stacked Energon cubes, setting them down before their lord.

"It would seem the Autobot stores were well protected, Lord Megatron." Knockout explained,  
"The Autobots had stored enough Energon to last them a very long time indeed. Thanks to you know who."

Megatron scowled and approached the Vehicons, "Thank you Knockout, I am aware of the reason for their high level of Energon reserves." he lifted a cube off one of the stacks, weighing it in a single servo, "I did not need reminding."

"O-of course, L-lord Megatron." Knockout stuttered, "I didn't mean to say you did, I was merely stating as-"

"Enough." Megatron scanned over the remaining Vehicons, "Where is the Star Saber?"

That weapon was just as, if not more deadly than the Forge of Solus Prime. And with no sign of the Autobots remains in what was left of their base, then it was likely they had escaped with the Star Saber. If they had any other weapons they'd brought with them, they'd have a truly serious problem on their hands.

Knockout wilted slightly, "I…apologize Lord Megatron, but we weren't able to find the Star Saber despite our best efforts."

Megatron ran a servo across an Energon cube, "I see." he muttered.

He curled his servos into a fist and scowled, "Knockout, I have a new assignment for you."

Knockout stiffened, "New assignment my lord?" with Megatron, assignments could be dull and easy… or insane and dangerous.

Megatron turned to the 'doctor' with an unreadable faceplate, "You are to head back to Cybertron and by extension the Omega Lock. Once there, you and a small detachment of Vehicons will search the rubble for anything of value. Perhaps we can learn how the Omega Lock worked and attempt to restore our home world…"

Realizing what his lord was ordering him to do, Knockout saluted, "You've got it my lord. I'll leave no nut or bolt unturned."

"Indeed." Megatron deadpanned, "Now go."

Without another word Knockout left, gesturing for the Vehicons to follow him. Once he was gone, Megatron pointed to two nearby guards by his throne, "Take the Forge aboard the Nemesis. I would not risk Autobot infiltration."

The guards saluted and marched over, while Megatron himself walked up to his throne. With the slightest of sighs, he sat on the steel chair and reclined for a moment. After getting comfortable, he looked over at the arm of his throne where a datapad was built into the structure.

Megatron touched a single servo to it. The screen shifted and the long silver faceplate of his Second In Command, Starscream, appeared, "Lord Megatron, how may I be of service?"

"Starscream," Megatron rasped, "It has come to my attention that no Autobots were caught in the destruction of their base. This means they've escaped and our scattered across the planet. I need you to organize a search effort. Find the Autobots, and bring them to me. Failing that, you are to ensure that they are no longer a threat to the Decepticon cause."

Starscream gave a curt bow, "And what if the humans get in the way, my lord? They do view the Autobots as humans."

Megatron let out a bark of laughter, "Deal with them as you would any enemy then Starscream. The humans need to learn their place in the galaxy. Am I clear?"

"Completely, Lord Megatron. It shall be done as you ordered." the screen went black and Megatron smirked.

"Run while you can, Autobots. But know that your doom is close approaching…"

_Monterey Bay, California…_

Along the massive green cliffs that made up Monterey Bay, was a long strip of road cut into the side. Like a snake, it twisted and turned along the edge of the cliff face with nothing more than a silver guard rail keeping cars from driving off the edge.

The sun was slowly setting off in the distance, casting a golden glow across the stunning landscape and shining off the ocean in a mirage of oranges, blues, and reds. It looked almost as if liquid fire were licking at the edge of the cliffs, a stunning and breathtaking view if ever there was one.

But the highway was relatively empty at the moment, with only the occasional driver speeding along the windy road. One of said drivers was in a bright yellow Urbana 500 with two black stripes running straight down the middle. If one looked closer though, they'd notice that while there was a passenger, there was no driver.

Because this Urbana was a certain Autobot by the name of Bumblebee, the local scout of the Autobots. His charge was a young 12 year old Rafael Esquivel. Who was looking out the window as they drove, instead of sticking it in his computer for once.

He wasn't watching the landscape race by either. No, he was watching the passing cars that were coming down the opposite ways. After all, they were on the run from the cons, and they needed a disguise. Bee was way too recognizable at the moment in his Urbana mode.

"How about that one?" Raf suggested. He was referring to a small yellow Volkswagen Beetle that raced on by.

Bumblebee, unable to speak properly, let out a series of annoyed whistles and beeps, **"Really Raf? Is that what humans call a joke?"**

Raf sighed, "Sorry Bee. It's just that, well you need a disguise that the cons won't pick up on. You're a custom Urbana 500. That's pretty easy to identify."

And since they were on the run, being identified by the cons was the last thing the two wanted. Until Optimus gave them the all clear and sent them coordinates to meet at, they needed something to hide as. Problem was, Bumblebee was a bit resistant to the idea of being anything other than his common alternate mode.

**"We could always reverse my colors. That would throw them off." **Bee suggested.

Raf watched a pick up pass by before responding, "You really think a color change would trick the Cons?"

Bumblebee was silent for a moment, "Bee?"

**"… You make a good point Raf." **Bumblebee admitted. Changing colors wouldn't do squat against the cons. They knew his model and if they were smart, they were probably scanning every Urbana 500 they saw. Best to throw them off their trail entirely.

Raf saw no oncoming cars at the moment and returned his attention to his laptop. He immediately cursed, "No internet out here. I can't even check the net to see if the others are doing any better than us."

Bee let out a sigh while coasting, **"Great. You sure there's nothing you can't do?"**

If there was any way to connect to the internet…

"No." Raf shook his head, "I left my adapter in the base. And without my armor, there's no way we'll be able to connect and check on the others."

They were in the middle of nowhere after all, not a lot of wifi hotspots, and his laptop wasn't going to get a signal on its own. So Raf was left to just stare out the window and lament the loss of his armor. A month or two back, Raf had convinced Kara, one of the two resident Kryptonians, to help him build a suit of armor so as to be able to help the bots fight.

She had agreed, always relishing in such a challenge, and in two weeks time they'd built the Special Tactics Robotic Integrated Power Enhancer, or S.T.R.I.P.E for short. An advanced piece of armor, S.T.R.I.P.E was a massive suit armed to the teeth and filled to the brim with gadgets. And the Decepticon assault on Darkmont had nearly destroyed the armor, forcing Raf to abandon the armor.

So he was back to his old position, running interference from the background. That is, _if _his stupid laptop would work! Raf let out a frustrated sigh and stared out the window silently, lost in his thoughts.

Bumblebee looked at his charge helplessly. Raf was a good friend of his, and the only human that could understand him. The two got along like peanut butter and jelly. But there were times where Bumblebee just… didn't know what to say. This was one of those times. So he remained silent too.

Raf continued staring out the window down the long twisty road, when he suddenly perked up, "Bumblebee, what about that one!?"

He was pointing at a 1969 Chevy Camaro SS, painted dark yellow with a black stripe around the grill. It was speeding towards them with its loud engine rumbling and roaring. There was a lot of power in that beast.

Bumblebee responded accordingly, **"Oh-ho pit yeah! Nice catch Raf!"**

Raf smiled happily and sank into his seat. Seems he was still helpful when the occasion demanded. The two muscle cars passed each other, and in a split second a flash of green light passed over the Camaro. And then the two departed, quickly vanishing from their respective views.

**"Hold on Raf." **Bee warned, **"This might be a bit…weird."**

"What do you-" the entire cabin started shaking and Raf immediately forgot what he was talking about, instead grabbing the nearest door handle instead. He felt the handle shift and immediately removed his hand, looking around in awe at what was unfolding before him.

The entire cabin was shifting in place. The inside was morphing, its modern synthetic seats being replaced with black leather seats. The steering wheel became a simple metal circle and steering shaft, the dash going analogue. But if Raf thought the inside shifting was amazing, the outside was even more so.

The Urbana 500 almost appeared to be peeling off of the car as it drove. Its paint job started to shift, its chassis and body morphed and groaned, reshaping itself. Tires popped and reinflated as he drove, the rims shifting into larger beefier designs. The grill shifted into a large open hole with a screen a good half foot back. Two large headlights formed on either side and the gril straightened into a horizontal bar. The cabin shifted backwards slightly and the engine suddenly shifted.

A loud roar boomed through the street, followed by the sound of tires shrieking on asphalt. Raf covered his ears for a moment, before the car took off down the road. Bumblebee let out a series of beeps and whistles. A cheer.

**"Whooo-hooo! That was awesome!" **he laughed excitedly.

Raf himself was stuck between trembling and laughing too, "Is that what it's like when you scan a new form?" he asked, having never seen such a process.

**"When in a vehicle, yeah. A little more tame in robot mode." **Bee responded casually, **"Now come on, let's test my new wheels!"**

Their plight forgotten for a brief moment, Bumblebee floored it and the two friends drove forward at a blistering pace, Raf laughing manically all the while. He wondered if the others were holding up as well as he was for a moment. Then he focused back on the drive at hand, laughing with Bee all the way…

_Arizona…_

"We shouldn't have left Bulkhead." Miko flopped back in her seat, "Jack and Kara needed our help, we should've stayed behind."

The two, wrecker and teenage punk rocker, had been transported to the middle of Arizona and were now driving along at a blistering pace. There were no clouds in the sky and if it weren't for Bulkheads A/C, Miko was pretty sure she'd have fainted from heat exhaustion. But that wasn't her problem at the moment.

At the moment she was more upset that Jack and Kara, the Kryptonian siblings, had been abandoned. The two had been good friends of her. Heck, Jack had trained Miko to use her own powers. She spared a look at the duffel bag in Bulkheads backseat before looking forward again. It didn't feel right leaving them behind, they should've stayed behind with them.

"Orders are orders Miko." Bulkhead responded, "If we'd stayed behind with the others, we'd be nothing but scrap metal now."

Miko crossed her arms and huffed, "It would've been better than running away though." She murmured.

Bulkhead let out a sigh, "Miko, listen. Jack and Kara have gone through worse. The Waller Incident, Brainiac, Zod. The cons might capture them, but they're tough kids. Jacks even a wrecker. If they can't escape, they'll still give the cons a run for their money."

Bold words, but they just felt like words to Miko. The con fortress was huge, and their new drones were even more deadly than before. She'd watched them get cut to pieces and still keep on fighting. They were like zombie cons, but way stronger and deadlier. Miko had a hard time believing she used to want to see things like that. Boy how things had changed.

With a sigh, Miko placed her cell phone in her hand. A moment later, it gently lifted off her palm with a gentle hum, "Powers still in control?" Bulkhead asked.

After an incident with a Cybertronian relic, Miko had been endowed with the power to manipulate sonic waves from any part of her body. She could emit sonic screams or create punches, kicks, etc. all with the power of sonics. It was a powerful skill… But it wasn't enough. Even unleashing the full brunt of her power on the cons hadn't kept them from capturing her, Raf, and Kara and using them as leverage to get the Omega Keys and use the Omega Lock.

And because of that, Miko couldn't help but blame herself. If she'd been stronger….

The phone fell and her hand wrapped around it, "They're fine Bulk. Thanks for asking…"

"Anytime kiddo." Bulkhead murmured. He wished there was a way to cheer her up, but Miko seemed pretty out of it…

"Wanna listen to some heavy metal?" he asked.

Miko slipped her phone into her pocket and stared out the window, "No thanks Bulk. I kinda just wanna think right now."

"…Alright…" Bulkhead said, really worried now. He just didn't know what to do, "If you change your mind, let me know. Okay?"

Miko smiled at his concern and turned back to his radio, "Thanks Bulkhead. I appreciate it."

"Anytime kiddo. Anytime."

_Rocky Mountains…_

Separated. Gone. Lost.

All these thoughts went through the mind of the large black motorcycle as it roared up the road along the snow capped mountains. She had abandoned the main road a long while ago. Driving along them was a good way to get the attention of the Decepticons. Though why Ratchet sent her to a snowy mountain range was beyond Voidwalker.

She was pitch black and massive. The mountains were a stark white to her black, though the cloud cover and light snow fall was helping to obscure her. If only the substance wasn't so irritating. It stuck to her chassis like glue, coloring her a dirty white.

Voidwalker didn't care though, and continued on up the mountain. The base was gone, the Autobots were gone, Optimus was gone… Kara was gone. Her charge, the being she was supposed to protect was gone.

If she had denta at the moment, they would've clenched. Kara was Void's responsibility. Ever since arriving on Earth, Optimus had assigned the Kryptonian to her as a way of helping her adjust to the differences in culture. At first Void had been put off by this. The little organic was rather annoying and a bit too hyper for the cold loner that was Voidwalker.

But, to her surprise, Kara slowly grew on her. She was a selfless and intelligent girl, qualities Void could respect. Kara would die before letting her friends and family get hurt, something that nearly got her killed when Unicrons Herald invaded the Earth. Watching her broken body fall to the Earth had made something in Voidwalker snap.

That was what truly changed her. The girl was her responsibility, yes. But she was more than that. She was Voids friend, her comrade. They were practically family in Void's optics. More family than she'd ever had back on Cybertron…

Voidwalker suddenly transformed to robot mode. Her form was tall and pitch black, composed of interlocking plates. A large horned helmet rested on her skull, with a long silver braid of wires falling from her the base of her skull. Her faceplate was a dull grey and lined with scars, her optics a burning platinum.

She was beautiful, in a dangerous way. Like a predator, her grace and power was unmistakable to anyone. Voidwalker was a dangerous being, one that should never be crossed by Autobot or Decepticon alike.

Despite all this power though, all her skill, they still were beaten. Void stumbled forward off the road into the snow. They'd lost. The Autobots were scattered, the Decepticons had taken over Jasper, and Kara was likely their prisoner. Void fell against a nearby tree and placed a clawed servo against it. Her claws dug into the bark and her optics clenched. She had failed her duties. Kara was captured, what kind of guardian was she to let that happen?

'You're an even worse one if you keep up like this…'

Void's servo clenched tightly, "I'll kill them all." her voice was cold and emotionless. She stood up from the tree and marched forward through the brush. She'd kill them all. Rip them limb from limb, tear out their sparks, let their heads roll.

She exited the brush and found herself on a large ledge, overlooking the mountain range. The snow brushed against her armor, but she paid it no mind. The landscape was vast and seemed almost never ending.

Voids servos clenched, "I'll kill them all!" she roared. Her voice slowly echoed back.

'I'll kill them all…all…all…'

"GEAH!" She screamed to the sky, "You so much as touch her Megatron, and I will rip the mesh from your chassis! I'm coming for you Megatron!"

Her voice echoed across the fields of rock and snow once more. Void turned from the ledge and walked back through the woods. She needed to find a way to contact Optimus, meet up with the others. When they did, she wouldn't stop. She would leave Megatrons Darkmont in ruins. No matter the cost.

_Washington State…_

Through the lush green forests of Washington, a large road cut through. The trees obscured it all from aerial view, providing the perfect cover. The massive oaks that towered over the road were an incredible sight, living creatures of such massive size and beauty. A low mist was spread between them, a stunning sight.

But despite this sight, the lone vehicle that roared through the street paid it no mind. A small blue sport bike with pink highlights roared down the street at an inhuman speed. A rider in all leather and a pitch black helmet rode atop the bike, hunched over and seemingly very focused. But this was not a biker, this was another Autobot. Arcee to be specific.

She had arrived in Washington thanks to Ratchet's bridge, and now she drove through the forest lost in thought. Not over only the destruction of the base, but… over the loss of Jack. Starting out as her charge, Jack had not gotten along with Arcee. But she'd just lost her previous partner Cliffjumper, so she was more than a bit bitter.

But over time, the two had warmed up to each other. They worked together and formed a good friendship. Until Arcee learned the truth, that Jack was an alien. A powerful alien that had lied to her. She'd felt betrayed by this and nearly cut all ties with Jack. And then he nearly died in the Shadow Zone.

Arcee had quickly realized that even though she was angry with Jack, that he was still her friend and partner. So she'd apologized as had Jack and all was forgiven. Then the Kryptonians invaded and things changed forever. Not only were the Autobots exposed to the world now, but Arcee had realized something important.

She had fallen for her Kryptonian partner. Both had fallen for each other and after Zod was beaten had started dating. It was wonderful, the two had formed a strong partnership over it all. It seemed like nothing could end what they'd formed. And then the Omega Locks showed up.

With the realization she might be going home, Jack and Arcee had descended into an argument. Both of them said things they regretted. Arcee's last words had been that she wish he had died. She said that to the person she loved… And in return, Jack had said the same. They hadn't spoken since.

"And now, he's probably the cons prisoner." Arcee growled to herself, "Way to go Arcee, just great. You're probably only the second worse femme in his life now. Right behind Airachnid."

Arcee shivered slightly, before focusing on the road, "I need to regroup with the others." she realized.

"It's the only way we can take down Megatron. It's the only way I can save Jack and undo what was done." she wasn't going to let him die thinking she didn't care. Arcee was too damn proud for that.

She passed out of the forest for a moment into the bright shining sun. It warmed her chassis as she drove and Arcee sighed. Sunlight seemed a key motif in her life now. It was because of sunlight that her and Jack had argued. A red sun would mean the kid would have none of his powers and be easy to kill. And Cybertron had such a red sun.

So Arcee had had a choice. Leave and go to Cybertron, or stay on Earth with Jack. Even now she wasn't sure which she'd go with, but it didn't matter. Cybertron was still dead, and so she was stuck here. Funny how things worked out like that.

Arcee heard the roar of jets and her mirrors flicked to see six contrails shooting towards her, and fast. Decepticons!

"Scrap!" she hissed, and kicked it into overdrive.

Seems like her luck wasn't holding out. Guess she'd have to do what she did best. Wing it…

_Darkmont, Nevada…_

"Lord Megatron, we have found and are engaging the Autobot Arcee." Starscream reported from the terminal built into his throne.

Megatron let out a chilling laugh and then grinned, "Excellent Starscream. Make sure you don't let her out of your sight. I want her head on a pike, understood?"

Starscream gulped, "Yes my lord."

The transmission ended and Megatron sat back in his seat. Everything was going according to plan. The Autobots were scattered, his fortress was fully operational, and now Starscream was about to finish off that troublesome femme Arcee. He'd prefer Voidwalker, but that femmes time would come.

"It's all falling into place now Soundwave, isn't it?" Megatron asked his Third In Command, the silent communications specialist.

Standing tall and thin, Soundwave turned his unreadable face on Megatron. A series of readings flashed over his smooth visor, along with a diagram of Earth. Megatron scowled when he saw those readings.

"An Autobot ship? Dispatch a group of my Omegacons to deal with it." he said dismissively. His new soldiers could handle an Autobot ship.

Soundwave nodded and sent out the order. While he did that, Megatron activated his communications from his throne once more, "Knockout, what have you found so far?"

A moment later, the prissy mech responded, "You'd… need to see it to believe it, Lord Megatron. I'll need a space bridge to your coordinates."

Megatron looked to Soundwave, who nodded. His visor flashed with various calculations. A moment later, a massive green vortex swirled to life on his throne platform, a fair distance away. Megatron stood up and waited for Knockout to enter.

He did so a few moments later, and stepped aside with a large grin on his faceplate, "Lord Megatron." he bowed.

Megatron raised an optic ridge, "Where is the object you found, Knockout?"

"On his way through my lord." Knockout replied with a smug grin.

At that exact moment, a heavy footstep echoed through the bridge, followed by another. Megatrons head swiveled to the bridge to see the outline of a new Decepticon slowly walking through the space bridge, at an almost leisurely pace. But his movements were fluid and controlled. Mechanical, even by a Cybertronians standards.

As he grew closer, Megatron slowly grinned as details became more apparent. The figure was relatively tall, with a large chest covered in a thick black plate. He was covered head to toe in dark purple armor. His right arm was thick and chorded, with a large clawed servo at the end. On his right arm was a massive cannon that dominated his arm. No hand in sight, and a belt of ammunition attached to its base. Two small winglets were attached to the figures back.

The figure finally stepped out of the space bridge, allowing Megatron to see his face. Or lack thereof. All that was there was a single emotionless optic. No mouth, no other eye. Just that one massive unblinking red optic.

The Decepticon bowed before Megatron, and spoke in an emotionless voice, "My liege, Lord Megatron. Shockwave reporting for duty."

**A/N: It's here! The Reboot to Another Type of Alien Book three is here! Oh man it felt great writing this guys. I really hoped you liked it. In fact, let me know, was this a good first chapter for the reboot? For those of you wondering, more characters will appear in the coming chapters, some epicness is about to go down! I want you guys to let me know what you thought, because I worked my aft off on this chapter. I need to know how I did so I can improve. Please let me know in the reviews, and if you have ideas or questions, PM me. Hope you guys enjoyed, bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Landings

_Darkmont Nevada…_

"Shockwave!" Megatron almost sounded… happy to see his head scientist returning, "This is quite an unexpected turn. I thought you'd perished on Cybertron…"

Megatron scowled as he thought for a moment. Starscream had reported that Shockwave's lab had been destroyed by two Autobots, and that the Decepticon had perished along with them. Megatron had accepted the report as fact at the time, regretting but accepting Shockwaves death.

But now that he knew of Starscream's penchant for back stabbing cunning… This was not as big a surprise as he'd expected. In fact, Megatron was going to have a long chat with the seeker, once he returned from his patrol.

Shockwave's lone red optic stared up at Megatron, "Reports of my demise were greatly…premature."

The Decepticon scientist thought back to that fateful day, "A pair of Autobots infiltrated my facility on Cybertron. Sabotaging my Space Bridge. I gave chase, but failed to accurately calculate the outcome. I awoke in the rubble, blinded. It soon became clear that I was marooned on our dead planet. With no means of communications."

Knockout walked up next to Megatron, "Chilling."

Shockwave continued, "In time, I repaired my wounds and resumed my experiments. The Solitude enabled me to make tremendous advances in my research… Until one day, my instruments detected a massive surge of unidentifiable energy… I traveled to investigate its origin at the edge of the Sea of Rust, where I encountered your salvage team… And the smoldering wreckage of the Omega Lock."

At this point, Knockout grinned proudly. Seems he was going to get quite a bit of praise for this feat of his. He hoped.

"But this was not the search party I had anticipated so long ago." Shockwave admitted, "Leaving one unanswered question: Why was I left for scrap, abandoned?"

Megatron crossed his arms behind his back, "That, Shockwave, is a question I do not have an answer for. I was informed of your apparent demise by my First Lieutenant, Starscream. If you seek an answer to your question, you can take it up with him."

Shockwave gave a curt nod, "As you say, my liege."

"Excellent." Megatron clapped his servos together, "Now with that settled, your arrival could not be at a better time, Shockwave. I have two experiments in particular I wish for you to focus on." he gestured for the scientist to follow him.

Shockwave did without a second thought. Knockout scurried up behind them, following the two cons. He didn't have anything better to do at the moment, so might as well try and keep up with the two.

"Exactly what experiments did you have in mind, Lord Megatron?" Shockwave asked.

The trio reached a platform that descended through the throne platform into the depths of Darkmont. He then turned to Shockwave, "As you are no doubt aware of, the Decepticons have achieved a tremendous victory over the Autobots as of late."

"Of course, Lord Megatron. Knockout informed me of the events concerning the Omega Lock and the formation of Darkmont." Shockwave confirmed. The platform came to a stop and opened up into a long darkly colored hall. Various lights illuminated the dark halls of the fortress, but the dark colors easily absorbed any and all light put off.

Megatron lead Shockwave forward, "I would expect nothing less of Knockout. However, such domination over the Autobots is a recent event." Megatron admitted.

"Up until the Omega Lock, the Autobots ensured victory over us for many months thanks in part to their allying with two species on this planet." Megatron looked over at Shockwave, "The first is the indigenous."

"Humans." Shockwave answered before Megatron could, "Knockout mentioned them. A fascinating species, but one far too weak to be of use to us."

Megatron chuckled, "You are correct Shockwave. Physically they're of no consequence to us. But Humans are intelligent creatures. What they lack in strength and size they make up for in their cunning. The Human Element certainly helped in their many victories over us."

The trio stopped in front of a pair of heavy doors. They were sealed tight with no visible window anywhere on them. Bars ran down horizontally and vertically across the door. There was a small panel on the edge of the door. Megatron pressed the panel and the door began to slowly open. The bars retracted and the door slid open with a hiss.

"The key element of the Autobot's victories over us, was this. A Kryptonian." the door slid open to reveal a lab or a prison. It was hard to tell.

Various tools and instruments lined the wall, several stands dotted the area, and an examination table lay in the center of the room. A dark red light was placed over the table and the small figure resting in the center of it. It was no Cybertronian, it was a Kryptonian.

She was about six feet high, pale skinned, with long black hair and tired blue eyes. Her body was muscled and she wore a dark blue suit and red cape, both of which were torn and coated in dried Energon and blood. A symbol was placed on her chest, a stylized S in an inverted pentagon. Like the rest of the suit, it too was in tatters and burnt.

The small Kryptonian lay with her head to the side, breathing weakly. Megatron smirked, "These beings were once mighty enough to engage my troops in hand to hand combat. And now they are broken."

He turned to Shockwave, "And I want you to learn how they function. Where they're strength and invulnerability come from, Shockwave."

The cycloptic scientist nodded, "As you wish, lord Megatron." his voice remained emotionless.

Megatron's smirk turned into a grin, "Excellent. Now come with me, there is one more project I must inform you of."

The three Decepticons left the lab, letting the doors slowly slam shut behind them. A low hiss echoed through the room, and once more the Kryptonian was left alone. After several minutes of complete silence, her eyes weakly opened and darted around.

"They're gone…good…" she groaned and sat back up, staring up at the red light beaming down on her.

It reminded Kara so much of Rao, Krypton's own red sun. The Decepticons assumed that like her brother, that being under red solar energy would leave her weak and unable to move. They didn't know that unlike Jack, Kara had grown up under the Red Sun. So while she did feel incredibly weak, she knew what it felt like not to have her powers.

Kara looked at the binds holding her arms, legs, and waist to the table. They looked to be basic steel binds instead of the energy ones that they used on Autobots. It was probably easier to restrain her like that and not waste the resources on creating miniature energy cuffs. And that was perfect for Kara.

"This won't be easy…" she admitted. She felt very, very tired… But she was the daughter of the head scientist of Krypton. She'd figure a way out of these cuffs and out of this fortress. Until then, the others would have to hold up without her and Kal.

"They're tough. They can handle it." Kara fidgeted in place, "I hope…"

_Washington State…_

"I'm starting to think I have the worst luck." Arcee grumbled. Right as a blaster bolt exploded nearby. She swerved to the side, feeling the shrapnel bounce harmlessly off her chassis.

Seriously. Out of all the Autobots the Decepticons had to find, it was _always _her. How had she and Jack met? Cons. How had she and Jack become partners? Cons. How had the two become an item…?Well actually, there was no cons that time. But the point was, she and Jack were always attracting trouble.

It wasn't Miko or Bulkhead who got chased by cons through the country side. It wasn't Raf and Bee that attracted an army of near invincible demigods to Earth. No, it was just her and Jack.

Arcee revved her engine and surged forward. A blaster bolt exploded behind her, but she continued on. Her mirrors flicked back to see that it was the new Decepticon drones overhead, lead by none other than Starscream. Go figure.

The group of cons descended lower to the ground. Arcee was no fool, there was no base to retreat to now, and she was outnumbered six to one. Her best bet was to head for the forest up ahead. At the very least the flyers wouldn't be able to track her in the thick green foliage.

The drones descended even lower, until they were skimming the highway itself. Arcee frowned, "How determined are these guys!?"

Seriously, if there were any other humans on this road, they'd take out the cons, they were so low. Megatron must have had them programmed to be downright suicidal in their determination. It would almost be a refreshing change if it weren't so annoying!

Arcee grunted and sped forward. Shadows passed over her shortly after. She was in the safety of the foliage now, there was no way the drones would follow her now. Her mirrors flicked to the group of drones, who still stayed incredibly close to the ground.

"What are they doing!?" Arcee yelled. Her answer immediately came after. The drones followed through the foliage, but they didn't remain in the air. Instead, their aircraft forms shifted. The wings retracted, their bodies lengthened, and steel wheels emerged from their undercarriage. The six cars hit the ground in a shower of sparks.

Barely jostled by their impromptu landing, the drones surged after Arcee, who cursed, "Triple changers!? Really!?"

So not only were the drones nigh impossible to kill, but they could shift from a land based alt to an air based one? That hardly seemed fair at all. Fairness aside, Arcee realized she'd get offlined pretty quick if she stayed on the road.

Rather then risk that, Arcee jerked her wheel to the side and drove off into the forest. The drones followed after, many of them transforming to better traverse the thick woods. The trees were many and the floor an uneven mess. After a few minutes of bouncing around on the woods floor, Arcee transformed to her robot mode and took cover behind a nearby redwood.

The massive tree was easily tall and wide enough to hide Arcee while she thought of a way out of the situation. The last time she'd encountered drones like this, during the assault on the base, they'd been nigh impossible to kill. The drones weren't durable, just persistent. Nothing short of cutting out their sparks would kill them.

And that left a problem for Arcee. Normally a drone was easy to take down. Lop off enough limbs, and it will stop functioning. Now though, with these new drones, getting rid of them wouldn't be easy. And if Starscream was somewhere around there, that would just make things even more complicated.

Arcee peaked around the tree, scanning the area for hostiles. She saw two of the new drones patrolling the area, lifting fallen trees, staring up into the foliage, etc. They looked very similar to the drones, except for several key differences.

First, they were a bright white instead of purple. Second, they had a rounded helm and a visor covering their optics, but their lower faceplates were exposed. Their mouths were lined with sharpened denta and glowed a faint purple, like their visor and the tubing that ran beneath their armor plating. They also had wider chests, were taller than the standard drone.

All in all, very dangerous soldiers indeed. Arcee shifted her servos into two small blasters, hearing them hum to life. She took in a breath she didn't need, then rolled out from behind cover and opened fire on the two cons.

The drones felt the energy blasts pelting their armor and turned towards Arcee, snarling. The femme started backing up across the ground. Recognizing her as their target, the two cons snarled and charged forward towards her. Their servos shifted into gnarled blades coated in a dark purple substance.

Arcee didn't know what it was, just that looking at it was enough to make her feel sick. She jumped backwards into the air, shifting her blaster back into a servo and grabbing the branch of a nearby tree. It cracked under her weight, but allowed Arcee to get the advantage. She pushed off the trunk and leaped over the two cons, firing all the while.

She was too low though, and one managed to grab her by her pede. It slammed her down into the ground with a loud crash. Arcee yelled in surprise and pain, feeling her vision stutter for a moment. The two cons towered over her with their twisted blades.

"Scrap." Arcee cursed and tried getting up.

One of the drones snarled and slammed its pede down on her back, forcing her into the ground. Their strength was impressive. They were nearly strong as Bulkhead and easily kept the femme pinned to the ground. Arcee struggled to push herself up, but had no luck. She was left to hear the sound of blasters flaring to life.

Her optics clenched tightly. This was going to- Wait, was that a jet engine she heard? It wasn't the kind the drones or Starscream used. It was louder and felt far more powerful. The two drones looked to the edge of the forest in time to see a bright blue and red jet shooting towards them. They pointed their blasters at it and opened fire. Their shots missed the jet or pinged off it harmlessly.

When it got closer to the forest edge, a gravelly voice shouted, "TRANSFORM!" and the jet's engines cut. It's entire form disassembled and reformed into a tall slender mech, with a glowing red blade in hand.

He slid across the ground and spun forward. His blade caught the first drone across the neck, slicing its head clean off. The now headless con stumbled off of Arcee and quickly received a blade through the chest. It stuttered once and then went limp and slid off the saber onto the ground, purple Energon pooling around it's headless body.

The mysterious fighter looked down at Arcee. The femme shook her helm and looked up and smirked, "Can't believe I'm saying this, but it's good to see you, Starscream."

The former Decepticon raised an optic ridge. This Starscream was not the same one chasing Arcee. This one was from an alternate universe (Long, LONG story) and had chosen to defect to the Autobots when he arrived in their universe. And even though he shared the name of the coward, he looked nothing like him.

This Starscream was tall and slender, but not to the extreme of his counterpart. He was colored a dark blue, with red highlights along his wings and arms. Two wings jut out over his shoulder and two large cannons were folded onto his back. He had a black helm, red faceplate, and grey optics covered by a piece of glass that made them impossible to read.

He offered a black almost blocky servo to Arcee, "You seem to be a beacon for trouble, Arcee." he rasped in his gravelly voice.

The femme took his servo and got to his feet, "What can I say? Jack rubbed off on me."

The other drone finally regained its senses and pointed its blaster at them. Starscream held out his blade, Arcee readied her blaster. Then, several more of the drones appeared and surrounded them with blasters raised at them.

Starscream frowned, "Did any of his abilities rub off on you, by chance?"

"Sorry, " Arcee apologized, "Afraid not."

The drones remained stationary, waiting for their final member to show up. There was some rustling of foliage and some cursing before the _other _Starscream stumbled into the group, cursing all the while, "Stupid organic plant life. I'll enjoy burning you to the ground." he grumbled.

"Sir." one of the drones hissed.

Silver Starscream looked up and saw the surrounded Autobots, "Well well, if it isn't Arcee…and company…" oh, he knew who the blue mech was. He just hated referring to him as such. A feeling Blue Starscream shared.

S.S. walked forward with his hands crossed behind him, "It seems that once again, you are at my mercy Arcee. If you beg, I may let you live… Until Lord Megatron orders otherwise, that is."

He and the drones all chuckled at that. Arcee rolled her optics, "Are you going to gloat all day, Starscream? Your voice is really getting on my nerves."

"No offense." she added, for Blue Starscream's benefit.

"None taken."

The other Starscream curled his long talons into a fist, "Very well. I suppose Lord Megatron will have to settle for your head's instead!"

He whirled to his troops, "Execute them!"

The drones raised their blasters, letting them hum to life. Arcee and Starscream crouched down, their weapons at the ready. Had there been two of them, maybe three, they'd be fine. But these new cons were so deadly, that even a small group of them was a large threat. Especially with them all surrounded.

In fact, they would have died… until someone tapped on the shoulder of one of the drones, "Excuse me." a smooth calm voice asked.

The drone straightened and turned around to find a blaster pointed in its face. There was an explosion and the drone collapsed backwards, its head a smoking wreck. The other drones all jumped in surprise, Starscream himself screaming like a femme.

"What!?" he screeched, in time for a white blur to run into the group and jump atop the nearest drone.

The figure tapped the drones head, "Knock knock!"

The drone reached up to grab him, only for the figure to lop its head off and flip backwards off its back. When he landed, he thrust his hand forward, and a long beam of energy whipped forward and wrapped around its waist. The figure pulled the drone down to the ground and fired once into its chest, knocking it offline.

It's worth noting, that the entire maneuver was over and done in two point five seconds. When the drone was killed, Starscream managed to react, "Kill him! Kill him now!"

"Fraid I can't let ya do that, Screamer." a gruff voice interrupted.

"What!?"

Several large blaster bolts slammed into the area, several hitting the drones. Starscream screamed angrily, "Don't just stand there, open fir-gah!"

He screamed when the white and blue mech from earlier slid under his legs, popped up, and wrapped the beam of energy around his throat, "Come on Screamer, you need to chill man."

Starscream gagged in surprised, grabbing at the whip. One of the drones ran to help him, only for a red and black fist to slam into its faceplate, knocking it over. A massive red mech was towering over the drone, cracking his servos. And he had an Autobot symbol proudly displayed on his grey shoulder pads.

"Gotta say, these drones have really gone downhill." the gruff mech boomed.

Arcee's optics went wide, "No way."

Blue Starscream slashed his blade in front of Arcee, making her blink in surprise. Not at the blade, but the fact that he'd just cut the servo off of one of the drones and kicked it back. The former con sent her a glare.

"Pay attention!" he hissed, and charged towards the remaining drones.

Arcee shook her helm, "Right." and came charging into battle with him.

The next few minutes consisted of a lot of blaster fire, sword play, and plan old fashioned fist fighting. It took a few minutes to bring all the drones down, and during the scuffle, Silver Starscream managed to break free from the whip and escape.

Arcee fired after him as he fled, but a large portal opened in the sky and swallowed him up. She let out a curse when he was gone and turned back to the battlefield. The drones all lay in pieces on the ground, large holes resting in their chest.

Blue Starscream pulled his blade from the chest of one of the drones and flicked the Energon off of it. Arcee walked up to him, "You alright?"

"I'm fine." the former con muttered. His gaze shifted to the two arrivals.

One of them was short, slightly taller than Bumblebee and covered in white armor with blue highlights. He wore a black helm with a sky blue visor covering his optics much like the drones. The difference was the rest of his faceplate looked like a normal Autobots. He had larger forearms where his wheels were rested, along with two wheels on his back. There was a red Autobot symbol placed on his chest plate.

The other one was much taller, nearly tall as Optimus, and covered in faded red armor. His shoulder pads were large and a faded white, with a pair of wheels at his elbows and heel strut. His thighs were also a faded red and his faceplate was a dirty white. A red helm adorned his head. And like the other Autobot, there was a similar symbol adorning his chest plate, below the black windshield on his chest.

Arcee didn't know the smaller bot, but she would never forget the red Autobot, who was talking with the smaller bot. She cautiously approached the two, wanting to be sure there was no chance she was wrong on this guess.

"Um, excuse me." Arcee spoke up. The two bots turned to her and Arcee took a breath, "Ironhide?"

The massive red bot blinked for a moment, before a massive grin broke out on his faceplate, "Arcee!"

And the femme suddenly found herself wrapped up in a giant bear hug. Starscream marched forward, with blade in hand. The other bot put a hand on the mech's shoulder, "Whoa there. Cool your jets there. Wouldn't want to break up the family reunion, would you?"

Starscream paused, "What?"

The mech called Ironhide dropped Arcee, who looked very stunned, and laughed, "Of all the dirt balls you wound up on, this is the one, eh!?"

Arcee blinked a few times before looking back up at the towering mech, "Well, it was a bit of an accident, but that's a long story."

Ironhide clapped her on the back, nearly knocking her over, "Guess it runs in the family, eh? Your sister's were just as bad."

Arcee smiled, "I guess it does. It's good to see you again Ironhide. We thought you died. Optimus replaced you and everything."

The big bot scratched his chin, "He did, eh? Well, he's not all wrong. I got trapped behind enemy lines for a few cycles. When I finally got back to Iacon, Optimus had already put Ultra Magnus in charge of the Wreckers."

He shrugged, "Oh well. No harm really. I wouldn't have made much a difference at the end of the war."

"No, but you sure saved my hide, Ironhide." the white mech pointed out.

Ironhide laughed while Arcee raised an optic ridge, "And this is?"

The white mech strolled forward and held out a servo, "You can call me Jazz. It's cool, I don't bite."

That just confused Arcee more, "I've heard that name before… wait, where did you learn that gesture? It's a human gesture."

Ironhide and Jazz looked at each other, "Internet."

The femme pinched her nonexistent nose, "Of course." she then took Jazz's hand, "Pleasure to meet you Jazz. I'm Arcee, and the former con is Starscream."

"What?" both Autobots looked at the former con.

He sighed, "Long story. One we don't have time for."

The two blinked, "…Right."

"So." Arcee turned back to Ironhide, "What brings you to Earth, brother?"

"Finally got over that, eh?" Ironhide laughed.

"You and Chromia were bonded Ironhide." Arcee reminded him, "So that would technically make us family."

Ironhide smiled and patted Arcee on the shoulder, "That it would, Cee. That it would. But how we got here… Oh that's a long story. We'll tell you back on the ship."

Arcee and Starscream exchanged looks, "The ship?"

"Well yeah." Jazz chuckled, "How did you think we got here? You think we walked?"

_Darkmont Nevada…_

Starscream screamed through the ground bridge and transformed to robot mode. He leaned against a nearby wall, panting slightly. He'd nearly died out there, and his entire unit was wiped out! Oh Megatron would not be pleased!

"Starscream." the seeker froze upon hearing his master's voice.

He slowly straightened up and readjusted himself, "Lord Megatron…"

"I take it you took care of the Autobots?" the warlord asked from behind him.

Starscream winced. Oh this was not going to be good, "Well… not exactly, my lord… You see, we were…ambushed."

Megatron was silent for a moment, "Is that so?"

Starscream nodded hurriedly, "Yes. You see, Lord Megatron, it wasn't just one Autobot. It was four and they caught me and my men off guard."

Megatron didn't say a word. Starscream gulped and slowly turned around, ready to apologize, "Lord Megatron, I swear I- AIIEE!" he screamed when he saw a single red optic staring down the seeker. Shockwave's optic.

"Shockwave!?" the seeker screeched. Megatron stood behind the scientist. Knockout stood next to Megatron with a smug smirk.

"Yes." Megatron confirmed, "It seems as though your report of Shockwave's death was…premature Starscream. And Shockwave had a question he wanted to ask you."

Starscream gulped and looked back at the con before him, "I-is that s-so? W-well I'm s-sure I can fit him into my schedu-"

"Now." Shockwave stated, in an eerily calm voice. There was no emotion in it, just a cold monotone that told Starscream he was not going to wait. He wanted his answer, and he wanted it now.

Starscream visibly trembled while Shockwave towered over him, " Why was I left for scrap, Starscream. Why was I abandoned? Why?"

The seeker frantically searched his processor for a viable reason that Shockwave would buy. If he told him the truth, the scientist would kill him then and there… or worse…

"N-no one saw you come out of t-the portal…" Starscream whimpered, "Wh-when your lab detonated… we assumed the w-worse…"

Shockwave said nothing. He remained motionless. His single unblinking optic just stared Starscream down. The other cons remained silent, waiting to see how this was going to turn out. Would Shockwave buy his excuse? Or would he use Starscream as his own personal experiment.

Finally, after several seconds of agonizingly slow waiting, Shockwave spoke, "Your answer is…logical…"

Starscream let out a relieved sigh. He'd just narrowly dodged death and felt like he was about to faint… But he was still alive. So that was a major plus.

Shockwave turned to Megatron, "I will return to my lab, Lord Megatron."

Megatron nodded, "Of course, Shockwave. I await your progress report."

The con bowed and walked off down the hall. When he was gone, Megatron turned his gaze on Starscream, "Find me Soundwave." he ordered, "And tell him to meet me at my throne room."

The seeker was still reeling from his brush with death and blinked, "What?"

Megatron turned to leave, "It's time I addressed the people of Earth personally, Starscream. And Soundwave can help me with that."

And with that said, the warlord left, along with Knockout. Starscream remained where he was, still recovering from what had occurred. Truly, this had not been his day. But it couldn't get much worse, right?

**A/N: … I bet you all thought one of the new Autobots was going to be Ultra Magnus, didn't you? I debated it for a long while, but decided on these guys instead. They are some of my favorites, so bringing them in was obvious. But with that said, what did you guys think, eh? Awesome way to bring them in, or was it a bit contrived? Let me know in the reviews what you thought, and expect an update either tomorrow or Wednesday. Hope you liked the chapter guys, make sure to review with critique, questions, etc. or PM me with your questions. Either works.**

**Bye!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Messaging

_Camp Pendleton, California…_

The military facility located along the California coast was a flurry of activity. With the rise of Darkmont in Nevada, the state had been all but evacuated. Even the large city that was Las Vegas was evacuated. When it came to Decepticons, the entire world knew what kind of threat they were. The memory of the earthquake machine that had nearly destroyed Tokyo was not forgotten.

But with the evacuation came the refugee's. People who abandoned their homes, or who's homes had been lost in the initial attack on Jasper. And many military facilities were acting as temporary homes until the situation was squared away. Camp Pendleton was one of them. Even with its square design, multiple housing facilities and supply warehouses though, it was being strained. Thousands of civilians were protected within its high concrete walls, all of them surging back and forth looking for food, clothing, and a place to sleep. It was utter chaos.

And even without the civilians, the base would still be in chaos. Military personnel not helping in aiding the refugee's were moving out. The entire western U.S fleet's were being assembled in San Diego, Los Angeles, and even San Francisco. Though unable to do anything at the moment, they had their weapons warmed up and ready to go when needed.

The infantry of the base were in a flurry. They prepped equipment, prepared tanks, helicopters, humvee's, etc. All in an attempt to prepare for a possible counter assault on Darkmont. The only reason they hadn't moved out yet, was due to the argument between three important members of the Pentagon.

The first was General Thomas Bryce, a tall man with a thinning head of hair and a thick brown mustache. Very no nonsense, he was known for being the general most often associated with anything 'extraterrestrial'. He had been there when the Autobots landed on Earth and allied with the humans, he had been there when the alien Kal-El, or Jack as he preferred, turned himself in. And now he was here to deal with the crisis in Jasper. It was always Jasper.

The second person was former Agent Fowler and now head Director of the National Security Administration (NSA). He was a slightly shorter African American mad with a head of black and grey hair and a tired face. Ever since he'd been made the Director of the NSA, the stress of the job had not been kind to Fowler. But he still did his best to help the Autobots out wherever he could, however he could.

In this case, he was attempting to help them deal with the third man, General Wade Eiling. Of the three, he was the oldest with a broad build, nearly bald head, and a sharp grey mustache. And of the three, he was the one who trusted the Autobots the least. Which made the entire situation at Camp Pendleton more than a little awkward.

The three were arguing in front of the local motorpool where the base kept their vehicles stored. Specifically, they were arguing in front of two civilian vehicles. A large red and blue Petebuilt Semi-truck and a red and white emergency response vehicle.

And honestly, at this point Fowler was ready to tear his hair out, "General Eiling, if you try and attack Megatron's fortress, he'll just fire back with twice as much force."

The General was unconvinced, "Not if we hit hard enough and fast enough, Fowler. For too long we've let the Autobots and aliens try and fight this war for us. It's about time we fought for our country ourselves."

General Bryce coughed, "Eiling, there's more at stake here than _just _the United States of America. It's the entire planet at risk here, not just us."

It was no secret among the higher ups that General Eiling was more than a little patriotic. He was the most 'American' man out there, even outing Director Fowler. Fowler may love his country, but he also knew when a threat was too big for them to handle. And the situation in Nevada was one such threat.

"Our duty, General Bryce, is to America first and foremost." Eiling reminded Bryce, "The other nations of the world are a secondary issue as far as I am concerned. And right now, my main concern is taking down that massive spire of death in Nevada."

Bryce rubbed his temples while Fowler sighed, "General, this isn't a bunch of terrorists held up in a cave in Iraq. This is an army of advanced aliens with weapons of mass destruction that make the nuclear bomb look like a firecracker in comparison."

Though no one knew the full extent of Darkmont's defenses, the two Autobots resting in the motorpool had informed them that the fortress was very similar to Megatron's capital on Cybertron. Not perfectly the same, but eerily similar.

Of course, knowing how powerful it was didn't make the General relent, "All the more reason to nuke the base until it's nothing more than a smoldering crater on the ground."

Fowler's eye twitched. There really was no reasoning with the man. He was too dead set on solving this problem his way. Fowler would never get through to him, but maybe someone else would.

The large Peterbuilt rumbled to life and rolled forward until it was out of the overhang of the motorpool. The three humans turned around to see the semi-truck suddenly break apart. It looked like it was falling apart at first, before it suddenly spiraled upward, slowly resembling itself into a massive figure.

He towered nearly as high as the command center of the base, and had a red upper body, broad shoulders, a narrow waist, blue lower legs, and a blue helm. His faceplate was smooth and seamless, with bright blue optics. A single scar cut across one of his optics, tearing the fluid metal to pieces.

This was Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots. He'd barely escaped the destruction of the base with his life. He and Ratchet had fled to California and had been called to this base by Director Fowler. They'd come and rested for a time. But Optimus was done resting, it was time he spoke before General Eiling got someone killed.

All three humans stared up at the massive mech. Optimus looked at Eiling, "General, your concern and dedication is admirable." he started, "However, this is not a matter your military is equipped to handle. Megatron's fortress is unassailable and heavily defended. If you assaulted it, you would simply cause more harm than good."

With the statement out in the air, Eiling glared at Optimus fairly viciously, "It's your fault this event is even happening. You and your kind attracted the Decepticons to Earth, and that brat attracted Zod here. If you damn aliens stayed off our planet, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Fowler shook his head from behind Eiling, while Bryce sighed. The man truly was never one to pull his punches. And he was obviously angry about the situation, but blaming Optimus would only cause problems. The ambulance rolled forward and transformed into a rather annoyed looking Ratchet.

"And where would you're kind be if we'd have never arrived? Oh yes, stuck in your 'war on terror' and focused on bombing yourself to the stone age."

Eiling crossed his arms, "Guess our species aren't that different than, are they?"

Ratchet's glare shifted into a fierce sneer, "You stupid little-!"

"Ratchet!" Optimus interrupted, "That's enough."

The medic looked at Optimus once before sighing, "Fine." Bryce and Fowler both let out relieved sighs while Eiling was…Eiling.

Optimus knelt back down, "General Eiling. I understand your worry and confusion. But even if we were to leave, the Decepticons would still attempt to control your planet. The fact that it is the source of Megatron's fuel source, Dark Energon, means he would never abandon it. The fact is, our two planets are intertwined. Blaming us for your misfortune won't fix anything."

Eiling stared at the massive Prime, who stared back. Neither men backed down for a minute, before Eiling huffed and stormed off. Fowler and Bryce watched him leave and let out relieved sighs.

"Ever consider going into politics, Prime?" Fowler asked.

"Too stressful." The Prime replied.

Eiling walked off and looked around for a moment. He saw a nearby alcove in the barracks and ducked into it. He pulled out his radio and tweaked it for a moment. Soon enough, the sound of a voice covered in static could be heard.

_"Yes?" _a calm southern accented voice asked.

"This is General Eiling. Is the project set up?"

_"Why yes sir, the starting's of the project have moved along swimmingly." _the voice answered.

Eiling looked around for a moment, "How long until the first results can be produced?"

_"At the earliest sir, our first prototypes will be released within ten years. I fear that the goal you set for us is exceptionally high. Much trial and error is to be expected." _

The general let out a hushed curse and slammed his hand against the wall, "Damn. We'd need that project sooner rather than later." he took in a breath, "Alright, I'm going to be linking the funding through a series of fronts. Even if I die or retire in the next few years, you should have enough funding to keep you going for two decades, easy."

That news made the voice very happy, _"Why thank you, General. How very kind and thoughtful of you."_

Eiling shook his head, "I plan ahead. But I'm putting a lot of trust in you, Doctor Leonard Church. Don't mess it up."

The voice, or Doctor Church, chuckled, _"I wouldn't dream of it General. Have a pleasant day."_

"Right." Eiling clicked the radio off and left the alcove. He straightened his uniform and continued on with his day. He had a lot of troops to organize and little time to do it in…

Back with Optimus and the others, they had just begun to discuss a possible plan of attack on Darkmont, when a soldier ran up to General Bryce. The General raised a brow at the man's sudden arrival.

"What's the matter son?" he asked.

The soldier saluted, "Sir, there's a civilian at the gates, said she knows the Cybertronians and wants to speak to them."

Bryce rubbed his chin, "A civilian? What's their name soldier?"

The soldier dropped his salute, "A…Mrs. Darby sir."

"June?" Fowler muttered, "Well, wasn't expecting to see her here. Glad she made it out okay."

Bryce looked over at Fowler, "You know this woman?"

"She's Jack's adopted mother. We've interacted a few times."

"So she already knows the Autobots." Bryce summed up.

Fowler gave a shrug, and Optimus answered, "Mrs. Darby is a friend of the Autobots and a trusted ally. If she wishes to speak with us, then she may."

Bryce gave a nod and turned back to the soldier, ordering him to let the woman in. The soldier saluted and ran off. A few minutes later, a red sedan drove through the crowded base and stopped. The driver's door opened, and a familiar woman stepped out. She had fair skin, stormy blue eyes, and long black hair tied back in a ponytail. She was dressed in a nurses attire.

"Optimus." she greeted, and then turned to the passenger door. She pulled it open, and the largest husky General Bryce had ever seen hopped out. He was huge, more like a furry horse with fangs then a dog. It was snow white with icy cold eyes. A black and red collar was tied around its neck, with the El family symbol dangling from said collar.

"Holy crap, that's a big pooch." Bryce muttered.

The large dog gave June a single lick before looking up at the Autobots, who gave small nods of acknowledgement. June patted the dog, "Krypto, why don't you go see if you can't find some other friends to play with right now?"

Krypto let out a small whine and his ears went flat, "I'll be okay boy." she promised, "Just going to talk with Optimus. Okay?"

At first, it didn't seem like Krypto was going to listen. Then he gave a small nod and slowly padded off into the base to find some new friends. A group of soldiers yelped in surprise at the massive husky, and were ignored.

Bryce activated his radio, "Attention all units, there's a large white husky wandering the premise. It is a friendly, do not engage. It's owner is with me."

There was a flurry of 'yes sir's in response, and he let the radio shut off. With that taken care of, June stepped forward, ignoring Director Fowler, and craned her neck back and back until she was looking up at Optimus directly in the optics.

"Optimus, what happened?" she asked, "First Jack vanishes, then a light descends from the sky, and next thing I know, Jasper is getting evacuated. What happened to the Decepticons. What happened to Jack?"

Ratchet transformed back to vehicle mode and rolled back into the motorpool. This was going to be a long, _long _story. And he wanted no part in retelling the story. He had his own guilt to deal with, he didn't need to see June freak out as she inevitably would.

Optimus himself took in a silent breath, and explained what happened to June. He explained the Omega Locks, how said locks lead to Arcee and Jack's argument, the battles that followed, the Decepticons capturing the kids and her own adopted daughter, and using them as trading pawns for the keys.

He explained how Megatron used that to build his new fortress and army. He briefly went over the following battle and how they were easily being overwhelmed. Following that, he explained their retreat from the base and how Jack and his sister had volunteered to hold off the cons and were most likely their prisoners at this point.

When he was done, June just stood there silently. Neither Fowler nor Bryce said a thing, and Optimus remained silent. June herself was still as ice, and as readable. She just stood there for a moment, digesting everything Optimus had just told her.

After several minutes of silence, she finally spoke in a hushed whisper, "…What do you need me to do. How can I help?" she asked.

"June…" Fowler started.

"Quiet Fowler." June ordered, and stared up at Optimus, "My kids, my only family are in danger Optimus. If there is anything on this Earth I can do, anything at all that will destroy that tower and free them, tell me now."

Months ago, this information would likely have put June in tears. The idea of losing her family terrified her. She didn't want to lose the only lights in her life, a fear she'd lived with since Jack's powers manifested. But over the past few months she'd realized Jack would never live a normal safe life. And that crying over it wouldn't fix anything. She'd realized it when the former Director of the NSA, Amanda Waller, nearly killed her son because he was a 'threat to national security'.

Since then, June had changed her police somewhat. She still worried, always would. Every event that Jack went through, she was worried about. But she also knew that telling him that would fix nothing. So instead June tried to help the best she could, like when Jack returned from War World in that 'unique' condition. Yes she'd teased him, but she still helped him through it despite her inner worries.

Now Jack was in trouble again, and so was Kara. June knew she couldn't fight the cons, but if there was _anything _that she could do, she would. All she needed was to know what it was and where.

Optimus gave the faintest of smiles. It seemed Jack wasn't the only one that had matured greatly since he first met the Autobots. But at the moment… there wasn't a lot to do, "I apologize June. But until the rest of the Autobots have regrouped, there is little you can do to help."

June's face fell, "Oh…alright. Let me know if that changes, okay?"

"I shall." Optimus promised. If there was a way she could help save her children, Optimus would tell her.

With that said though, June turned to General Bryce, "I take it you're in charge?"

"In a manner of speaking." Bryce replied. June raised a brow and he elaborated, "Technically, General Eiling is, but he's throwing a temper tantrum right now. So yes, I am in charge."

"…Okay." June said slowly, "So, is there any way I can help around the-"

Bryce's radio crackled to life suddenly, _"General, we've got a situation!"_

Letting out a sigh, Bryce raised a finger to tell June to wait for a moment. He grabbed his radio, "What's the issue?"

_"There a TV near you sir?" _the man asked.

Everyone blinked at that and looked at one of the TV's attached to the upper corner of one of the pillars holding the motorpool's roof up. It was off at the moment, but Bryce knew it would work. Eiling was many things, but a slouch when it came to maintenance he was not.

"Yeah, there is." Bryce reported, "Why?"

_"Turn it on sir. It's… um…what's his name…. Galvatron…no… Oh, Megatron. It's Megatron sir."_

The group went wide eyed and looked up to the television set, "Thank you soldier." Bryce said quickly, and walked up to the device. He reached up and turned it on. A moment later, the screen flickered to life to reveal Megatron's faceplate on screen. Bryce frowned and tried changing the channel, but every channel seemed to have his face.

"How is this possible?" he murmured.

Ratchet laughed, "For a Cybertronian of Soundwave's skill, easy. The human entertainment network is not secure in any manner of speaking."

Bryce sent the Autobot a look before Megatron finally spoke in his rasping tone, "Citizens of the planet Earth. Few of you have likely heard of me, and fewer know me. I am Lord Megatron, leader of the Decepticons and now the leader of this planet."

"Seriously?" June deadpanned. He had one itty bitty fort on the planet and suddenly he was proclaiming Earth as his own?

Megatron continued speaking, "For the past year or so, my Decepticons have waged a war against the Autobots, the true cause of our war. Our homeworld was consumed because their leader, Optimus Prime, had a never ending hunger for power. And that is why I contact you today. Humanity has sheltered the Autobots for many years, using them as their 'protectors'."

Optimus frowned deeply, but remained silent.

"Let it be known now that your 'protector's are wanted war criminals of the Decepticon's. You have harbored them for far too long, and now I have this to say. Turn them over to us, give us these criminals so they may be properly punished."

Bryce crossed his arms, "No one will buy it. Even if they did, we have no reason to turn them in…"

Megatron suddenly smirked, "You have one week to turn them in. If you do not, I will begin destroying this world. Those who suffered General Zod's assault, know this. That was but a precursor to the darkness I will blanket this planet in. Your skies will be left darkened, your oceans sweltering pits from the deepest parts of hell. The landscape will be left cracked and blackened beneath your feet. I will ensure the human race does not live to see another day."

June's hands clenched, "He won't get away with this."

The warlord's smirk faded, "You will not stop the coming end, humans. Your Autobots are scattered now, and the Kryptonians are _our _prisoners now. There is no one to protect you now but yourselves. And know that any hostile actions taken against us will lead into the destruction of one capital from each country. The cannons on my fortress can reach and location on the planet. If anyone wishes to test this, go ahead. We will eagerly await your challenge."

Bryce and Fowler exchanged nervous looks. Megatron's smirk returned as a full grin, "You have one week humans. Choose very wisely."

The screen went black, and the message was over. The entire facility was dead silent. The message was simple and clear. Turn in the Autobots and Earth lives. Hide them, and the planet dies. The answer seemed obvious…

Ratchet transformed and stood next to his leader, a worried expression on his face, "Optimus…what do we do?"

The Prime didn't answer. Instead, he put a servo to his comm. "This is Optimus Prime calling all Autobots. I repeat, all Autobots. The time has come for us to stop hiding from the Decepticons. Autobots, assemble."

_Shockwave's Lab, Darkmont…_

It was dark. Only a faint red light and the light of a welding torch illuminated the lab. The con scientist stood hunched over his other project that Megatron assigned him. The Kryptonian was fascinating for sure, but this one was a far simpler one with a more immediate result. It was the logical choice to begin work on this project first.

Shockwave stopped for a moment and straightened up, examining his handiwork for a moment. The body lay on an examination table, midway through the reconfiguration process at hand. But it was proceeding fast.

The white panels that once adorned the body were dirty and torn, the blue paint faded. The youthful faceplate was long since relieved of life, it's optics a dead grey. A long gash cut from its shoulder to its waist, cutting clear through. One could see the examination table through the gash.

Shockwave looked over his modifications. The pedes were deconstructed and being extended, as were the arms. More chords were being added for an increase in strength. Purple and black plating rested on a nearby table. A mask with a tube connected to it rested among the various panels.

There was a slight stirring of metal scraping against metal. Shockwave ran his servo over the mangled corpse, "Shockwave's log. Had Lord Megatron sent me a more ruined corpse, this project would be impossible." he admitted to his logs.

"But the youth of the body allows for extreme malleability." he reached into the gash and pulled the blue chest panel open, scratching the ruined Autobot insignia away, "the Spark Chamber is remarkably unharmed, as is the processor. With minor modifications, Lord Megatron's project can be completed within the week."

His optic traveled over the body once again, "The body will become a powerful weapon. A scourge that Lord Megatron can unleash on his enemies whenever he wishes."

That made him pause, "Note, project rename. Subject shall now be known as Scourge. I will inform Lord Megatron later."

And with that done, Shockwave returned to his work. His welder tore through the armor and he slowly began the reformation of the Autobot corpse into a powerful new weapon. One that could very well destroy the Autobots in the proper circumstances. With no Kryptonians to help them, Scourge truly was an appropriate name for the soon to be Decepticon…

**A/N: BUM, BUM, BUM! Sorry this is a relatively short chapter, but I figured I needed a shorter one. Next up, the Autobots assemble and begin the planning for rescuing their comrades. But new enemies await, and the humans may not be willing to wait for them to do that. Will they turn on their former allies and turn them into the Decepticons? Why don't you guys let me know what you think in the reviews and PM's guys. Please, remember to review, I won't update without a review. They keep me going, and help me improve. Alright guys, see you next chapters. Bye!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Autobots Assemble!

In the far East of the United States, lay a corrupted and twisted city. It's sky's were filled with smoke and pollution, its streets littered with trash, and the buildings old and decrepit. The city was a cesspool of crime and villainy. Gotham City was its name, a city who's corruption and crime was what it was best known for.

Well, that and one other key figure. A dark figure who was only talked about in whispers. The criminals of the city feared him, the city officials denied his existence, and the police were strained in their attempts to work with or arrest him. It varied from officer to officer.

This man had quite a few names he was known by. The Caped Crusader, the Dark Knight, and of course his most common name… Batman. The dark protector of Gotham. No one knew who he was, or why he'd shown up. Just that he existed and sought to punish any crooks he came across.

But, just like everyone else in Gotham, and by extension the planet, he too had seen Megatron's message. Unlike everyone else though, who was panicking, the Dark Knight had a very different reaction.

He retreated deep underground into his 'lair'. The Batcave. A massive underground cavern, retrofitted for his use. Steel catwalks lined the open space, with pathways carved into the sides of the giant cavern. At the center of it all was a large circular platform with several catwalks extending from it into other platforms that stored his arsenal.

In this center platform, a large central computer towered over Batman. He busily typed away at the computer screen. Megatron's message to the world was displayed prominently on screen, frozen mid sentence.

Batman stopped typing for a moment and leaned back in his chair. He rubbed his chin with a gloved hand. Behind him, his trusted butler, friend, and surrogate father Alfred Pennyworth walked into the Batcave, carrying a tray with two cups of tea. He set it down behind Batman and looked at the screen itself.

Seeing Megatron, the butler frowned behind his meticulously trimmed mustache, "What a crude being, this 'Megatron'." he noted.

Batman narrowed his eyes behind his cowl, "He has the power to back himself up though, Alfred. As long as that fortress of his stands, he's basically holding a gun to the planets head."

Alfred poured the steaming tea into both cups, "A very precarious situation, Master Bruce. Do you think he'd keep his word if the Autobots were turned in?"

It took exactly point five seconds for Batman to answer, "No. In fact, it's very likely he'd destroy the Earth no matter what anyone did."

The butler made a small undistinguishable noise. He offered a cup of tea to his ward. Batman politely declined. When he was working he preferred not to drink. Alfred shrugged and set Batman's cup back down on the tray.

"Our best bet," Batman continued, "Would be for the Autobots to bring that fortress crumbling down."

"Which would be exceptionally difficult without the Kryptonians." Alfred added. He had seen how powerful 'Superboy' and 'Supergirl' were. He and Bruce both knew how powerful they were, and that they were key in holding the cons off.

Batman folded his hands together, "That's where things get interesting though. I don't think Megatron has the Kryptonians."

Alfred raised a brow, "Sir?"

"He doesn't have both, at least." Batman corrected, "Megatron seems like the kind of power mad lunatic who would show off the captured bodies of his enemies to break moral. He didn't show either of them to back his claim up."

"You believe that they may be free?" Alfred asked.

Batman shook his head, "No. I think Megatron has one of them. He wouldn't have made such a boast otherwise. But he didn't show that one, because people would think he either fabricated the footage or would realize that he didn't have both. So instead he only mentioned them. The average person will assume he has both and panic. It's a fear tactic. Cause panic, and the people are much easier to control."

Realization hit Alfred, "And the people will be more likely to give the Autobots to him."

"Exactly." Batman looked back at the screen, "But if my theory's correct, then one of the Kryptonians isn't in his custody."

"Then where is he?"

Batman leaned forward and started typing on his computer, "That's what I intend to find out, Alfred."

_Washington State…_

After rescuing them from Starscream and his squad, Jazz and Ironhide lead Arcee and the other Starscream to their ship. They'd landed a fair distance away near a small river valley. Trees lined either side, while the banks were covered in small stones that crunched under the heavy footsteps of the Autobots.

According to Ironhide, it was the clearest area they could land in at short notice. The vessel itself rested on its landing gear with its cargo bay door open. It had two large engines jutting back on either side, with a relatively compact body. A standard Autobot transport, much larger and more comfortable then Wheeljack's 'Jackhammer' vessel.

Once aboard, Ironhide had handed out Energon cubes to everyone as a 'job well done'. Arcee and Starscream had graciously accepted. It had been three days now since they're lat refueling, and they were pushing their limits.

Arcee let out a refreshed sigh after she took a sip and looked over at her brother-in-law, "So, Ironhide. Where've you been all this time?"

Ironhide set his drink down, "Now that, 'Cee, is a long long story."

"We've got time." Starscream deadpanned, "Not a lot we can do with the rest of the Autobots scattered."

Jazz gave the seeker a confused look, but he waved it off, "One story at a time."

Starscream and Arcee then turned their gaze back to Ironhide, who let out a gruff laugh, "Back to telling war stories again? Alright, it'll be like the old days!"

He laughed long and hard before calming down and launching into his tale, "Well 'Cee, after I got trapped behind enemy lines, I spent the next couple of years causing all sorts of mayhem in the con ranks. Supply depot's, Energon facilities, barrack's. You name it, I probably blew it up."

"That sounds about right." Arcee muttered. Ironhide had a natural affinity for explosives, even back when he'd served on the Elite Guard. Seems that hadn't changed.

Ironhide snickered before leaning forward and speaking in a somber tone, "It was a good run for a time, before I heard a…rumor…"

The sudden shift in tone caught Arcee's attention. If this was something that made Ironhide go somber…

"What kind of rumor?" she asked.

The wrecker rubbed his faceplate and let out a sigh, "I heard a rumor that Chromia was alive and well."

Arcee felt her eyes go wide and felt a faint pain in her chest. Chromia was one of Arcee's sisters, the other being Elita-1. Both femmes were older than Arcee, and had volunteered to fight for the Autobots when the war began. Shortly after, Arcee joined. Less than a year later, both Elita-1 and Chromia vanished during a mission never to be seen.

Ironhide had been devastated at the news. It almost caused him to sink into a depression, until Optimus had spoken to him personally and reminded him of his duties to the Wreckers and Autobots. After, the loud and boastful Autobot had returned to his former personality, but buried himself in his work.

Arcee had rarely seen him during those days. But she had heard of his supposed death and been devastated at the loss of her family. With this new information though, the loss of her family was now fore front at Arcee's mind.

"Are…are you sure Ironhide?" her voice quivered slightly.

The large red mech nodded, "Completely. Heard a few cons say she was being experimented on in one of Shockwaves labs. I immediately beat the coordinates out of them and made my way there. Tore through the facility until I found where she had been kept…"

His faceplate fell and he reached into his subspace, "This was all I could find that remained. I think they dumped her body when she went offline." he produced a plate of light blue armor with an Autobot symbol displayed on it. The emblem was scorched and torn apart, but it was still recognizable.

Arcee felt the lubricant valves in her optics start to open. She mentally ordered them to shut and took in a shaky breath, "That's it?" she squeaked.

Ironhide gave a sad nod, "Most of the terminals were wiped by the time I calmed down. I never found the body, but… I did learn something else important."

"What?"

"That Optimus was ordering a mass evacuation of the planet. So I decided it was time to return home. I fought my way out of the con territory and passed through the Sea of Rust. That was where Jazz and I met up."

Jazz chuckled, "Long story on how I got trapped there. Let's just say things got complicated when the Energon Transport I was escorting got attacked by a certain group of Decepticons."

Arcee gave a nod, "So after that, you guys escaped?"

"More like blew our way off planet." Ironhide chuckled, trying to forget the subject of his lost love, "We tore our way through the cons and managed to get to Iacon. After everyone had abandoned the city. We found this ship unused though, and after a few cycles fixing it, we took off. We spent the next few decades hunting cons down until we heard Optimus Prime's message calling us to Earth. So we headed on over. Seems we stumbled onto something big."

That almost made Arcee laugh, "Ironhide, that's an understatement. We're scattered. Decepticons blew up our base and we've been forced to scatter over the planet. Meg's rebuilt his fortress on Earth and has an entirely new army at his disposal. We're pretty beaten right now." she didn't mention Kara or Jack. Too much at once, and… she wasn't sure how she'd explain their romance yet.

Ironhide and Jazz were silent as they digested this news. It was a lot to take in for sure, but those two were… well, they were unique. Jazz let out a laugh, "Well, if things were easy for us, we wouldn't be Autobots, would we?" he asked.

Arcee blinked, before smiling, "No, I guess we wouldn't."

Ironhide opened his mouth to speak, when the console suddenly beeped. Ironhide sighed and got up, striding over to the cockpit, "What is it?" Starscream rasped.

The crimson mech narrowed his optics and read the message, "It's… a message from Optimus!"

The others immediately shot to their feet, "What? The Big O?" Jazz yelped.

"Yeah," Ironhide nodded, "Listen."

He pressed a key on the console, and the familiar baritone voice of Optimus Prime reverberated through the ship, _"- Optimus Prime calling all Autobots. I repeat, all Autobots. The time has come for us to stop hiding from the Decepticons. Autobots, assemble."_

Arcee frowned, "Something must've come up. Optimus wouldn't risk breaking radio silence otherwise."

Starscream nodded in agreement, "Can you trace it?" he asked.

"Not my department." Ironhide admitted, and backed off the console, "That's the 'Specialist's job'." he gestured to Jazz,

The small white mech rolled his shoulder, "I can give it a crack."

He strolled over and his servo's flew over the console. It took only a few moments before he let out a triumphant, "Ha!" and turned to the others.

"Found the boss bot." he reported, "Ship's plotting a course as we speak."

Ironhide chuckled, "Great. ETA?"

"Ten, twenty tops."

Ironhide nodded and sat in one of the chairs, "I'd hold onto something, this baby has some kick." he warned.

Arcee and Starscream obeyed and grabbed onto the handholds lining the ceiling of the transport. It would take only a few minutes to reach Optimus and the others. Once they did, they could finally plan their counter attack on the Decepticons, finally take them down. Arcee's grip on the handhold tightened.

It creaked in protest, but she ignored it. Instead, she looked out the cockpit as the ship slowly rose off the ground.

_'…I'll set things right, Jack. I promise.'_

_Orange County, California…_

_"…Autobots, assemble."_

Bumblebee's radio shut off after he played the message for Raf. The boy fell back in the new interior of Bumblebee's alt mode. It seemed fairly authentic, it sounded like Optimus and given Megatron's recent message, Optimus would obviously want to assemble the Autobots and assault the Decepticons fortress.

But there was always still that what if. Raf looked at Bee's radio, "What do you think Bee? Should we go and check it out?"

The scout was silent for a moment, thinking over their decision. He'd managed to pinpoint the location of the signal pretty easy. A short drive from where they were, in the opposite direction. They were on the freeway North, the origin was south. But if it was Optimus, and he was planning on taking down Megatron, it might just be worth the risk.

**"It's worth a short." **Bumblebee whirred.

Raf nodded in agreement, "Alright, let's go."

Outside in the stream of traffic, a lone yellow Chevy Camaro suddenly hit its brakes. Tires squealed and smoked poured from its rims. It quickly twisted around in the southern direction, revving its engines. Cars swerved to the side, avoiding the oncoming maniac.

Bee roared forward, jumping from the north bound freeway to the south bound freeway. Raf jerked back and forth, locking Bee's door in a death grip. The two swung into the south bound freeway and rocketed forward along the street towards Optimus.

Raf looked eagerly over the dash, "Hold on guy's, we're coming." he murmured.

He just hoped that the other Autobots got the message. If they were going to take Megatron down, they needed everyone for this.

_Arizona Border…_

Bulkhead played Optimus's message, _"-Autobots, assemble."_

"You hear that Miko?" the wrecker was practically giddy with happiness.

Miko cheered in her seat, "Yes! Bossbot's calling in the cavalry! About time we showed that bucket head what happens when he messes with Earth!"

Bulkhead's radio shifted to show the location of the transmission. It was located in California, "That's a few hour's drive from here." he noted.

Miko looked out the desert, "Then step on it Bulk! The sooner we meet up with Optimus and everyone else, the sooner we can put Meg's back in his place!"

That got a deep laugh out of Bulkhead, "I hear that!"

The green SUV suddenly revved into overdrive, pushing himself faster than any human vehicle of the same make could possibly hope to go. The desert landscape sped by at a blistering pace while Miko watched eagerly. They were going to find the others and take back their home, take back what was there.

The girl paused for a minute as the car drove through the desert. She and the others were safe, but what about the people in Jasper? She looked down at her phone in hand. Kara had looked over the device a long while ago and modified it so it couldn't be tracked.

Miko inwardly scolded herself, _'Can't believe I forgot!'_

With a flick of her wrist, the phone was open and she dialed the number and held it to her ear. She listened to the dial tone for a few moments before she heard someone pick up.

"Hello?"

Miko took in a shaky breath, "Mom…it's Miko."

_Rocky Mountains…_

The massive black motorcycle sped down the mountainside, skidding around corners and barely staying on the road. After having decided nothing would stop her from saving Kara, Voidwalker had started back down the mountain. The mountains held nothing for her but introspection and wasted time. Time that could leave Kara tortured and broken.

Something Void would never allow to happen. She would sooner tear her own spark out then let Kara ever fall to harm while under her watch. Such thoughts and determination where so high on Void's mind though, that she didn't expect to receive a transmission from Optimus all of a sudden.

_"This is Optimus Prime calling all Autobots. I repeat, all Autobots. The time has come for us to stop hiding from the Decepticons. Autobots, assemble."_ his voice boomed.

Void's brakes seized and she came to a squealing stop, nearly careening off the cliff edge. She only barely managed to avoid such an outcome due to sheer luck. The femme stayed there, at the edge of the mountainside. Her entire frame was trembling at the implications of the message. The Autobots were assembling.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on. It was time to strike back against the Decepticons and take back their home and their allies. Voidwalker's tire squealed against the pavement and she suddenly shot forward across the street. There was no recklessness to her driving now, just cold fury and determination.

Void had a true goal now, and a group to assist her in it. Nothing would stop her from returning to the Autobots now.

Nothing.

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter guys, but I've been feeling sort of depresses lately. College starts up for me this Monday, so I was struggling with this story for a long while. I hope you liked this chapter, and next chapter the bots began planning their assault and execute the first part of their rescue efforts. It's also worth noting that my schedule for College is weird. I only have classes on Monday and Wednesday, but they go till five PM. So don't expect any story updates from Sunday to Wednesday until break comes around. I may make exceptions every once in a while, but that varies. But either way guys, I hope you liked the chapter and remember, leave reviews with critique and PM me with questions if you have any at all.**

**Bye!**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: It Begins

_Camp Pendleton, California…_

Optimus let his servo drop from his comm. link and looked at the others, "The message has been sent out. Any Autobots on the continent should have received it."

"Any idea when they'll get here?" Director Fowler asked. With Megatron's little death threat to the planet out in the open, the sooner the Autobots took him out, the better.

However, Optimus shook his helm, "There is no way of knowing, Agent Fowler. Ratchet set the ground bridge at a random series of coordinates meant to scatter the Autobots at random intervals throughout the United States. It could take a matter of minutes, or a matter of hours for them all to arrive."

The fear of the Decepticons tracking the Autobots through the remains of the ground bridge was all too real to Optimus. So he'd ordered Ratchet to use an algorithm that would formulate a random destination within a set of parameters. This would hopefully keep the bots from being as easily tracked by the cons.

General Bryce unfolded his arms, "All said and good, Optimus. But do you have a plan for dealing with Darkmont? Because any minute now, the Pentagon, Congress, The President, and the entire UN is going to be breathing down our throats in the next hour or so. They'll want to hand you over, now that it seems like you couldn't make good on your promise to protect us."

Ratchet huffed, "I'd like to see them try. We're not some wind up soldiers for your superiors to send whenever-"

Optimus gestured for the old medic to calm down, "Easy Ratchet. The humans are our allies though, as well. Should we fail in our endeavor to rescue Jack and Kara, we may have no other choice, if we wish to save the Earth."

"Wait." June spoke up, "If you guys turn yourselves in, why would the cons give Jack and Kara back?" it didn't make sense. If the two were free, they would just break their friends out, it was in their nature. That is, unless…

A solemn look passed over Optimus's faceplate, "Mrs. Darby. If we fail in our assault on Darkmont, I believe that the safety of Jack and Kara will be trivial at that point. As would the safety of our men. If we fail, there is a good chance we will not return. If we are turned in before hand, it is also likely Megatron would execute us, and our Kryptonian allies."

The look of horror on June's face was obvious. Optimus looked at her sadly, "Though the thought saddens me, I fear that is a likely outcome should the worse come to pass."

Normally he'd try and sugarcoat the situation for any human that asked. They were a young species, and relatively innocent in many regards. They had not experienced several centuries of war like Optimus and his Autobots had. But in this case, trying to ease June's fears would cause more harm than good. She deserved to know the truth, no matter how dark and depressing it was.

June herself took in a shaky breath, before clenching her hands, "I…See. Thank you for being honest with me, Optimus." She turned around to leave.

"Wait, June, where are you going?" Fowler asked.

She glanced over her shoulder at the Director, "To get Krypto. You guys will need all the help you can get. Krypto will help tip the balance."

Before anyone could say anything in response to this, June strode forward, leaving the Autobots and the humans behind. They all exchanged worried looks, but said nothing. It was a stressful time for June. She wasn't going to be the 'sweet sensitive mother' they all knew. Until Jack and Kara were safe and in her arms, the woman was permanently switched to 'mama bear' mode.

It almost made the Bots pity the Cons, lest they fall under her wrathful rage. Almost.

While the Autobots began prepping themselves, June walked through the refugee camp looking for Krypto. She didn't bother calling the dog, because odds were he would either ignore her or be too distracted. He was a lot like Kara in that regard. If he found something interesting, it would hold his attention for quite some time. But if he was ignoring her, then that meant the poor pooch was still depressed over Jack's absence.

That dog was too dang loyal for his own good. Ever since Jack rescued him from the crashed Kryptonian ship on Cybertron, the dog had refused to leave his side. Only Jack could get Krypto to leave his side, and that took a considerable amount of coaxing. After all, for all intensive purposes, Jack was his dad and his closest friend.

And as Kara had explained to them, Kryptonian Warhounds were fiercely loyal to their masters, willing to fight and die for them. A noble creature to be sure, but it made working with the dog a bit irritating at times.

But with that in mind, June kept looking for the massive white husky. One would think a six foot tall wall of muscled fur wouldn't be hard to spot in a crowd. That person would be wrong, as it took June several minutes of searching to find the dog. She did finally find him after a good ten minutes, amongst some very familiar faces.

"Biggest, dog, ever." a bulky red haired youth said, staring up at the massive husky.

The large white dog cocked his head to the side and sniffed at Vince Vermont's hair. Somehow, someway, the dog had managed to find the refugees from Jasper. June saw Vince among them, some of his friends, that floozy Sierra, her 'Superboy' fan club (June shuddered at the thought of the organization) and many adults from the town, including a few of June's colleagues from the Hospital.

And all of them were crowded around the massive dog. Not just because of his size of course, but because of the shield that dangled from his collar. Krypto wasn't well known to Jasper, due in part to the fact that he'd moved to the Autobot base when he got too big, and so many of the local humans didn't know that Jack even had a dog.

So of course, seeing that shield with the stylized S on it raised a few questions amongst themselves as to whether or not Krypto was Jack's god.

June however, was in no mood for playing twenty questions, "Krypto!" she called.

The husky's head jerked to the side to look at June. Seeing her his tail clocked into overdrive, and he trotted on over to her. The crowd parted before the massive dog, letting him come right up to June. When he reached her, he sat on his hindquarters and cocked his head to the side in a questioning way.

June reached up and scratched him behind the ear with a small smile, while the former inhabitants of Jasper murmured amongst themselves. They weren't as quiet as they liked to think they were.

"So it is Darby's dog…"

"If it is though, where is he?"

"I haven't seen him since the town was evacuated."

"You think the Decepticons got him?"

All of these were ignored by June. She was a woman on a mission after all, and it took quite a bit to distract her from it.

She spoke to Krypto in a soft tone, "We're going to get Jack back now Krypto, okay? We're going to get your daddy back."

The dog lowered his head and let out a sad whine. June stroked his fur, feeling an ache in her chest at how upset the dog was, "I know you miss him. We'll fix this, I promise."

June's words seemed to lighten Krypto's mood somewhat. His shaggy head lifted back up, and his ears pointed skyward. He then gave June a big old lick on the side of her cheek, making the woman giggle.

"Good boy." she laughed, wiping the slobber off her cheek, "Now come on. We need to meet up with the bots."

Krypto barked in agreement and the two turned to leave. As they were leaving though, a voice stopped them, "Mrs. Darby, wait…"

The woman turned around to see it was several of Jack's classmates, standing forward and looking apprehensive. Vince stood at the head of the group, with Sierra directly behind him.

June raised a brow, "Yes, Vince?"

The red head seemed to think for a moment before speaking, "What…what happened in Jasper? Is what that bucketheaded freak true? Did they get him and Kara?" June noticed an almost pleading tone in his voice that he was wrong.

Looking over the crowd, June saw that this was true with all of them. They all looked scared, frightened, and just…broken. Jack had been a hero to them, an alien with unimaginable power who as scorned and laughed at. He could have killed them all without breaking a sweat. But instead, he fought off his own kind, saved their world. He never asked for a reward, never fought back when he was brought down. To these kids, these high schoolers who experienced a similar experience every day, Jack was an inspiration to them. Their hero.

But they deserved to know the truth. False hope was useless in such a situation at the moment. So, with a heavy heart, June sighed.

"He was." she admitted. There was gasps of horror and shock.

Sierra looked troubled especially, "So that…monster, has Jack? And his sister?"

June gave a solemn nod. More worried murmurs and cry's, "That's it!" one of the students threw his hands into the air.

"We're through! Game over man, game over!" some of the adults even seemed to agree with that statement. In fact it seemed the entire town was going to go hysterical. And in a refugee camp, hysteria was the last thing they needed.

A creak emanated from June's hand when it tightened. Her expression set into a scowl and she strode up to a pile of boxes. Without a second thought, she climbed up onto them while Krypto hopped up and stood next to her.

Seeing everyone slowly falling into a panic, their worried shrieks and cries echoing over the camp made her determination solidify. June took in a deep breath, "Enough!" her voice was a normal non enhanced voice. No Kryptonian strength or megaphone to amplify it.

Despite this though, it cut through the panicked yells of the former Jasper inhabitants. It cut across the entire refugee camp, catching the attention of the other civilians that escaped Megatron's wrath. All eyes turned to June while the panicked yells and screams slowly died out.

When the camp went silent (Except for the occasional engine of a passing Humvee.) June spoke again, "Is this really how you're going to act!?" she demanded.

Confused expressions spread over the refugee's faces. June elaborated, "One little incident, and you all start screaming and panicking? Really, is that it?"

"But…it's Superboy…" someone pointed out, "If he's gone, there's no one to take the Decepticons down."

June scowled at that, "So? When Zod invaded Earth and threaten us if we didn't turn him over, did Jack panic? Did he scream and cry in fear? Did we, did the humans scream in terror?" silence was the only answer, letting June continue, "No we didn't! We cracked down and searched for the supposed criminal. The government scoured the globe for this one person. And what did Jack do?"

Again, silence.

"He turned himself in, for us!" June wiped at a tear in her eye at the memory, "He knew that if he did, there was a chance he'd be taken from us. From his family, his friends… from Earth. He knew all of that, and yet he still turned himself in!"

She looked over the crowd, "Because despite the bullying," Vince turned away from June's gaze, "Despite the manipulation," Sierra hung her head, "And despite the flat out rejection of what he was, he still saw the good in us! He saw that humanity was worth fighting for, and that his sacrifice would not be in vain!"

The people of the camp began crowding up around June as she spoke. She herself wasn't even sure where this speech had come from, it just had. She was tired of crying, tired of being afraid. Tired of being tread on by higher beings and treated like trash for it. Humanity may not be strong enough to face this threat alone, but they were not going to go out with a whimper. Her son didn't nearly die on a daily basis for June to allow it.

The crowd looked at June with a bit of awe and curiosity. Most of the humans didn't know June personally, or at all. She was just some random woman standing on a pile of boxes giving a speech to them.

"For months now, Jack has fought for us! He has protected us, put himself in the line of fire for us! Every threat, every battle, every crisis he has been there protecting humanity. Because he believes we are strong enough and that we are worth it!"

She then scowled at the camp, "And instead of proving him right, what are you doing? Standing here, crying to yourselves. Maybe Jack was wrong, maybe we aren't as strong as he thinks. Not if we start crying the moment he stops fighting for us. Right?"

Surprisingly, June received an instant response to this question, "Wrong!" every voice in the crowd yelled back. It was a wave of sound that nearly deafened June, almost knocking her off her makeshift stand.

A small smile spread across her face, "Is that so? You're not going to panic?"

"No!"

"Not going to cry?"

"No!"

June crossed her arms, "What will you do then?"

"Do what it takes!" many yelled, "It's our home! Our world!"

June raised smiled, "That's right, it is our world! Are we going to let the cons have it!?"

"No!" everyone yelled.

"That's right, because we never give up! Jack may have super strength, speed, maybe invulnerability. But we have our spirit, our determination, and our will to push on despite the odds! If the Decepticons want to take our home from us, they'll have to learn the hard way that Humanity doesn't go out with a whimper. But with a roar!"

The crowds bellows of approval were deafening as crowds cheered and screamed as loud as they could. It was an impressive sight, several thousand humans cheering at once. Individually, they were weak, but together in numbers, humanity could power through the toughest of times. Megatron's fortress in Jasper was no exception. If he thought wiping out humanity was going to be easy… he had another thing coming…

Back at the motorpool, the Autobots and the two human officials watched June's rally of the refugee's with both interest and respect. Optimus wore a small smile while Bryce and Fowler were just…stunned.

"That is one hell of a woman." Bryce declared.

Fowler nodded silently, while Ratchet chuckled, "Any human that can raise a Kryptonian would have to be tough. They are a very…rambunctious race."

Bryce thought back to when he first met Jack, and how the boy had turned himself in…by floating in front of a military base.

"That is putting it lightly, doctor." he muttered.

His radio suddenly crackled to life, _"Sir, we've got an inbound bogey approaching the base."_

Bryce blinked and looked down at his radio, "What? Is it Decepticon?" if they'd found them now…

There was a pause over the line, _"…No sir. No Decepticon markings on the hull. It doesn't look like any con ship we know of."_

That made Bryce frown and look up at Optimus, "Any ideas?"

The Prime himself looked around the base for signs of the ship. He spotted a small shape inbound from the north at a fast pace. It quickly grew larger, and recognition spread over Optimus's faceplate.

"General, tell your men to stand down." he ordered.

Bryce did a double take, "You sure?"

"Yes. That vessel is an Autobot transport. The Decepticons do not have one within their armory."

Fowler scowled, "How do you know for sure?"

Ratchet scoffed, "Puh-lease, Megatron would never use an Autobot ship to infiltrate our ranks, not when he has superior numbers and firepower."

Bryce looked unsure, "…Right…" he clicked his radio on, "Let it land. That's an order."

_"Yes sir!"_

The radio went silent and Bryce looked back up at Optimus, "This better not bite us in the ass, Prime." he warned.

The large mech was silent, watching the vessel slowly approach. US soldiers began scurrying about the base in a frantic manner, arming themselves in preparation for the shuttles landing. The ship passed over the base's walls and its engines slowly tilted vertical to keep it hovering in place.

The engines slowly lowered until they touched down on the ground and went dead. The entire shuttle was surrounded by soldiers, weapons at the ready. Optimus ignored them and walked forward. The crowd of soldiers parted and allowed the Prime to stand before the vessel.

It's lower bow split open and a platform slowly lowered from the ships bowels. And who should be standing on the platform but Arcee, Starscream, Bumblebee, in a new robot mode, and Raf (Who stood at his feet). Behind them where two mechs, one red and one white.

Optimus felt his optics go wide in surprise, "Ironhide? Jazz?"

The three members of Team Prime (And Raf) walked off the platform. The two newcomers laughed at how dumbstruck Optimus was. Ironhide walked up and clapped the mech on the shoulder pad with a heavy thud.

"Good to see you're still in one piece, Prime!" he laughed.

Optimus finally got over his surprise and returned the gesture, "I had thought you dead, Ironhide."

The mech grinned, "Well, you should know it takes more than a few cons to take me down Optimus. I've been working behind enemy lines now for a few decades until I ran into Jazz."

The little white mech shrugged, "I had to help the bozo out."

Optimus nodded in understanding, "Your arrival could not be at a better time. I take it Arcee informed you of the situation?"

Ironhide frowned, "Ol'Buckethead built a new Darkmont. And judging by the transmission you sent out, you want to take it down."

"Essentially." Optimus confirmed, "However, the rest of my Autobots are still scattered across the continent."

If they were to launch an assault against Darkmont, they would need Voidwalker and Bulkhead to bolster their forces. They were some of their strongest hitters and would hopefully tip the balance in their favor.

Luckily, Jazz had a solution to this problem, "Ya know Optimus, our ship can track Autobots. It's how we found BB and his little human friend," he jerked a thumb at the mech and Raf, the latter of whom was using his computer for a personal task.

"We can find the other bots if you need us to."

Arcee walked up to the group, "Shouldn't be hard." she commented, "Only ones left out in the field are Voidwalker and Bulkhead. Primus knows where Wheeljack is."

Ironhide laughed again, "So the big lugs are still around eh? I think picking him up will be no sweat Prime."

Despite his reluctance to split up the group for fear of Decepticon attack, Optimus had to agree. Without a ground bridge, the shuttle was their best bet for regrouping. Which meant it was up to Ironhide and Jazz to find them.

Optimus looked at the two soldiers, "Very well. Go and find Bulkhead and Voidwalker. Bring them to us and we will plan the assault on Darkmont."

Ironhide gave a salute. Jazz gave his own two finger salute, and they both marched off to the vessel. When Ironhide reached the platform though, he felt someone tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Ratchet.

"Ah, doc! What can I do for you?" he asked.

Ratchet frowned and vented, "There's one thing you need to know about Voidwalker Ironhide. You'll want to know this."

Ironhide blinked before shrugging, "Alright doc, lay it on me."

_Rocky Mountains…_

Faster and faster, she raced away from the mountains towards the origin of Optimus Prime's transmission. Her vehicle mode had hit its limit though, and despite this making the surrounding landscape nothing more than a blur of lines. But she didn't care.

She had her mission now. Get to Optimus. Assault Darkmont. Save Kara. If anyone got in her way, it was their funeral. Voidwalker was not one to be merciful, and that was a fact that didn't change.

But, as she drove along the empty highway, she saw a speck in the distance. She at first dismissed it as nothing but a trick of the optic. But as she drove, the speck didn't disappear. In fact, it grew larger. Larger and larger it grew, until Void was able to identify the object.

An Autobot transport shuttle. Something she'd not seen since the end of the war. Void hit her brakes and squealed to a stop. She transformed and looked up as the shuttle's shadow fell over her.

The vessel slowly lowered itself before her, the engines blowing up dust and debris. The troop platform descended from the underbelly. Void felt her spark jump into her throat at the figure standing on it.

Ironhide smiled when the platform touched down, "Hello Cel. It's good to see you again."

In the back of Void's mind, she almost felt something crack, before stubbornly ignoring it. She blinked out a few tears that had formed in her optics, and stepped onto the platform, regarding Ironhide with a neutral expression.

"My name's not Cel, Ironhide. Not anymore. It's Voidwalker."

Ironhide clapped his servo onto her shoulder. Had any other mech besides Ratchet or Optimus tried that, they'd have lost an arm. But Ironhide was also different from most mech's, and so Voidwalker allowed it.

The former wrecker smiled, "You may have a different name, but your still that scrawny femmeling I trained all those years ago."

He poked her in the center of her chest, "Long as that keeps pulsing, you'll never truly leave us Cel. Remember that."

Void was silent as the platform lifted up. She couldn't think of anything to say to that comment. There was nothing to say to that comment…

_Darkmont…_

Kara blinked the red light out of her eyes and looked over at Shockwave, who stood at the terminal. He had been 'examining' her for over an hour. He had not touched the girl, only run scans and taken a few blood samples. It was really starting to annoy her.

"You know," she called, "you're not really good at this whole torture thing, are you?" she asked.

Shockwave didn't turn around, "I am not here to torture you. I am to study you. Preliminary tests must be made first. You're a delicate subject. I wouldn't want you to expire too soon."

Kara sent a glare the cons way before letting out a resigned sigh and looking over at her cuffed hand. The restraints were about a decimeter or so in diameter, give or take a few centimeters. Far too large for her hand's to slip through…

Recalling her lessons on Kryptonian biology, Kara realized that despite this, there might be one way to escape from her prison when Shockwave went to work on his 'other project'.

The bone structure of a Kryptonian was nearly identical to a humans. And within a Kryptonian hand, there was a handful of small bones bound together, one of them known as the Scaphoid bone. It was small, tiny really in comparison to some of the other bones in her hand. But with enough pressure, it would break.

And if it broke, her hand would be able to bend at an angle it would be incapable of reaching otherwise. It was the only way to escape her predicament. It wouldn't be easy, it wouldn't be fun, and it would hurt like hell…

But if she was to get out of the con base, return to the others, and find her brother… she was going to have to break her own hand.

Kara shivered and looked at her left hand, _'I really hope the guys get here before it comes to that…' _she thought with a whimper.

**A/N: And so, having survived my first week of college, I return to the realms of Fanfiction. So yeah, College is…easy, so far. Let you know if that changes. So next chapter we get the plan for the assault on Darkmont and the beginning of the assault. It'll be a two parter (Three parter if I'm feeling lazy) and I hope to have the next bit out tomorrow. But with that aside, I have a small announcement for a 'story'. But it's not really a story, it's an FAQ I'll be posting within the next few days, written as an 'interview' with yours truly. I was inspired by fellow author Incredible Muffin's own interview a while back and have decided to do my own.**

**So if you have any questions for me regarding just…personal questions, literary choices, plans for future stories, etc. leave them in your review, or PM them to me. Otherwise, just review with critique and PM me with new ideas and questions.**

**Bye!**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Break Out

_Camp Pendleton, California…_

The level of activity at Camp Pendleton had not decreased in the slightest. More refugees were streaming in, the military itself was abuzz with preparations, and the Autobots and their allies had finally assembled.

It had taken a day or so, but the team was almost whole again. Optimus, Ratchet, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Arcee, Starscream, and Voidwalker where all reunited. Ironhide and Jazz had added themselves to the group, and their human allies (As well as Krypto) had also rejoined their little group.

They were almost whole once again. Only two beings were missing from the group. The Kryptonians, Kara and Jack Darby. The fact that they had been captured by the cons was one of the main reasons they were planning an assault on Darkmount in the first place. Even if such an idea was utterly insane and beyond dangerous. Just another day in the life of the Autobots honestly.

The group had assembled at the bases' motorpool, with Agent Fowler and General Bryce also involved in the conversation. Due to the fact that Darkmount was on American soil, this was sort of a given.

"So how are we going to rescue Jack and Kara, and take that eye sore down?" Miko demanded from her position by Bulkhead's pede, a very stern expression on her face.

Optimus frowned, "The fact is, Miko, there is no sure fire way to ensure either of those objectives."

Immediately the Autobots started up a chorus of complaints and angry arguments. Optimus quickly raised a servo to stop them, "Allow me to elaborate."

Kneeling down, Optimus tapped the side of his helm and produced a rough holographic image of Darkmount from his optics. He pointed at top of the spire, where four large cannons blossomed from the top like some sort of sick demented steel flower.

"Darkmount, like Megatron's fortress on Cybertron, has no doubt been equipped with Scale IX Fusion Cannons, designed to destroy any targets at a mid to long range. Due to Earth's small size, he could target most major human cities within a 3,000 mile radius. If we wish to launch an assault, we need to get at least here."

Optimus pointed his servo at a sliver of ground right at the base of Darkmount, "The cannons cannot safely fire within 1 mile of Darkmounts foundation without risk of damaging itself. However, Megatron no doubt has this area heavily guarded by both stationary and mobile forces."

The Prime looked up at Arcee, "You and Starscream have encountered Megatrons newest forces. What have you learned about them?"

The hologram he was projecting shifted into the tall angular white Decepticons. Arcee scowled and knelt down in front of it. The large white shaggy dog Krypto padded up next to her and growled at the hologram.

"Well firstly, they're powered by Dark Energon. _All _of them." Arcee started.

Voidwalker scowled, "We already were aware of that Arcee. What new Intel have you learned."

Arcee shook her head, "I was getting to that Void. These new Vehicons aren't just flyer's like we first thought. I was chased by a group of them in Washington State. They're triple changers."

Ironhide groaned and rubbed his helm, "Triple changers? Great, as if Blitzwing hadn't been a big enough pain."

"I would like to add," Jazz interrupted, "That these new cons ain't particularly smart. Seems when ol'buckethead made them, he decided to make them as mean and nasty as he could, but that means they're about as bright as a night light… painted black."

Optimus raised an optic ridge at Jazz, "So advanced tactics and techniques should be more effective against them?"

Jazz shrugged, "Or you just hit them really, really hard until they break."

Ironhide chuckled and clapped Jazz on the back, "Real shame you where spec ops. I would've loved having ya on the Wreckers."

"Eh, I would've been too much for ya light weights to handle." Jazz replied casually.

Arcee coughed into her servo, "Can we focus on what's important here?"

The two bots gave her apologetic looks and Arcee sighed, "Point is, we can outsmart these new drones, but they're still durable enough that they can be real trouble in large enough numbers."

"Noted." Optimus said, and reverted the hologram back to Darkmount, "Then we will need a joint land air team to provide a sufficient distraction so that the rest of our team can infiltrate Darkmount and disable its defenses. As well as rescue our comrades."

Bulkhead slammed his servos together, "I think leading the cons on a wild goose chase sounds like loads of fun. I volunteer for the distraction."

Bee stepped forward and let loose a series of beeps and whirrs. Starscream also stepped forward, "I will provide them with air support so that Ironhide's vessel may be used to transport the others."

Optimus gave the seeker a thankful look, "Very well. Starscream shall lead the assault team."

Bulkhead shivered, "Never thought I'd have to take orders from a Starscream." he then smiled at the seeker, "But then again, there's no other seeker I'd rather have at my back."

"… You realize all the other seekers you know work for the Decepticons or are dead, yes?" Starscream deadpanned.

That got a chuckle out of Bulkhead and Ironhide, "Sometime later, you really need to tell me the whole story of where you found this guy Prime." Ironhide chuckled.

"It is a long story Ironhide." Optimus sighed. He returned his attention to the hologram and quickly reigned the conversation in.

"I will lead a team in an assault on the Fusion calls." he added, and looked up at the former red wrecker, "Ironhide will accompany me."

His optics shifted to Voidwalker, "I will work with Bulkhead and Bumblebee." she said dryly, "The better the distraction, the greater your odds of success."

A brief flicker of disappointment flashed over Optimus' optics, but he quickly hid it, "Very well Voidwalker. That leaves the team to find and rescue our Kryptonian allies."

"You already know I'll go." Arcee said without hesitation, "I'm not leaving my partner in Megatron's disgusting clutches any longer."

Optimus nodded and looked at Jazz. The Spec. Op trooper gave a shrug, "Aw Pit, why not? It'll be interestin seein' what all the hubbub about these Kryptonians is anyway. Besides, no one does stealth like the Jazz-man."

Miko giggled and Raf gave her a look, "What? You don't get it?"

Raf sighed, "I get it. It's just an awful pun Miko."

Miko huffed and then looked up at Optimus, "And what about us, Optimus? We should get to go too, I mean Jack and Kara are our friends, we should help them out."

"You'll be staying here with me and providing support." Ratchet grumbled with crossed arms, "After what happened last time, bringing you near the Decepticons would be a horrible idea."

"What!?" Miko yelled, and glared at the medic, "That whole thing was your fault anyway, you grumpy piece of-"

"Miko, stop." Optimus boomed, interrupting her before anyone could start throwing blame around.

The girl looked at Optimus with a scowl, "They're our friends too Optimus! We should be out there helping you guys rescue them!"

Optimus shook his head, "You are determined Miko. But remember that last time, your full power was not enough to fend off the Decepticons that abducted you. And without his armor, Rafael would be at grave risk of injury once again. And I cannot willingly condone anymore organic casualties."

The expression on Miko's face was a mix of anger, frustration, and sorrow. Because deep down she knew Optimus was right. She and Raf would just get in the way in their current states. They weren't strong enough to really help out… But Jack and Kara were her friends! They'd both saved Tokyo from the Decepticons, and Jack had helped Miko learn to control her powers! If she didn't try to help the bots take down Darkmount and rescue him, she felt like she wasn't pulling her weight…

"Aw, don't be like that kiddo." Jazz knelt down next to the girl, almost patted her on the back, and then thought better of it when he saw the size of his servo compared to the rest of her body.

He settled for tussling her hair with a servo, "We'll be in and out before ya know it. Con's won't know what hit em, and then you and yer mate can get back together."

"WHAT!?" Miko and Arcee screamed in unison.

Miko immediately stumbled back bright red, "Jack and I aren't…he… we're just friends! Besides, he already has someone else."

Her eyes flicked to Arcee and gave her a very pleading 'please don't squish me' look. Arcee just closed her optics and sighed. Jazz blinked behind his visor and rubbed the back of his helm while laughing awkwardly.

"Oh… whoops, my bad."

After watching silently for several minutes, Fowler finally stepped forward and coughed into his hand, "Well this is all said and good Prime, but General Bryce and I have our own idea of how to finally deal with Darkmount once your team is done."

The bots all looked at Fowler. Ironhide chuckled, "Oh, I've got to hear this."

Fowler ignored him and gestured to the General. He stepped forward and cleared his throat, "After some debate, and thanks to our own analysis of the structure, we've found several key structural weakpoints. With a large enough explosions in the concentrated area, we could bring the entire fortress down in one fly by."

Ironhide blinked in surprise at that and then let out a happy laugh, "Alright, it's official. I love these humans!"

Bryce sighed and gave the Autobot a look, "Can I continue?"

The big burly bot chuckled, "Go right on ahead General."

Keeping an eye on the Autobot, Bryce started when he was sure he wouldn't be interrupted again, "The problem is that we can't get close due to Megatron's own forces, and the secondary defenses he's using. If your team can take out either a majority of Megatrons forces, or disable the his defenses, we'll be able to wipe that eye sore off the map."

A very small smile spread over Optimus Primes faceplate, "I will see what I can do, General Bryce. Is there anything else we should know?"

"Just one." Fowler sighed, "Not all the generals are as patient as Bryce. Eiling in particular is gunning for the Decepticons. If you don't finish what you're planning in the next three hours, they plan on nuking Darkmount."

"What!?" everyone yelled at once. Shock was plastered across their faces at the idea that the military would even consider such an idea. And to some it showed them just how little faith they had in them without Kara and Jack around.

As much as the bots hated to admit it, they _had _grown too dependent on the two, maybe even used them for their war. Kara and Jack had their own problems. They where the last of their race trapped on a world that feared/loved them. In all honesty, they shouldn't have been letting them fight with them, but it had seemed like a legitimate tactic at the time.

And now they were paying for it.

The hologram of Darkmount fizzled out and Optimus stood up, towering over the two, "Agent Fowler, you mean to say that if our assault fails, your government will use a weapon of mass destruction to wipe Megatron and us out?"

Fowler winced and rubbed the back of his head, "…Not exactly. They'd need congressional and executive approval before they can start dropping nukes on American soil. And given that Jack is technically friends with the President, I don't think she'd ever let us drop nukes on them… Eiling's a bit of a zealot though. He might decide that the safety of the country is more important than his job."

"He's one stupid fleshy, isn't he?" Bulkhead growled.

Arcee crossed her arms, "The idiot's going to get someone killed." she muttered.

"How could such a fanatical fool get into a position of power?" Voidwalker growled. Her sharpened servos scraped against each other, spilling sparks onto the floor.

Fowler raised his hands defensively, "Whoa whoa! Eiling might be a bet… overzealous, but he means well. He hasn't worked with you guys as often as Bryce and I have. Look, I just wanted to give you guys a warning, that's all."

Optimus put a servo on Void's shoulder and sent the other Autobots a look, before turning his gaze back on Fowler and Bryce, "Thank you for the warning, Agent Fowler. We'll take it into consideration."

Removing his servo from Void's shoulder, Optimus walked forward in the middle of the group, "But the time for planning is over. It is time we reminded Megatron that Earth is under our protection."

A few of the bots cheered and Miko crossed her arms and huffed. She walked off while Raf watched her go with a worried expression, "…Please don't do anything stupid…" he muttered.

Optimus looked at Ironhides ship, "Autobots!" he boomed, "Rollout!"

_Darkmount, Nevada, Ten Minutes Later…_

"We're coming in hot!" Ironhide reported from the cockpit. With Nevada so close to California, and the ship capable of traveling between planets at a rather impressive pace, the ship had reached the edge of Megatrons fortress in record time.

And then Megatron had scrambled his fighters. What followed was Ironhide pulling off maneuvers that were making Starscream feel sick. But it kept them in the air for a few more seconds. After breaking through the screen of fighters, Ironhide quickly descended until they where skimming a few hundred feet over the ground.

The rear of the craft slid open to reveal brown earth whizzing by in a blur of rock and dirt. Wind was blown out of the cargo bay and the Assault team prepared themselves. As they readied themselves though, Optimus approached Void and put a servo on her shoulder.

Her head swiveled to look at him with those piercing platinum optics of her, "What?"

"Are you sure you do not want to go with Arcee and Jazz? Kara is your charge."

Void shifted her right servo into a blaster and cocked it, "No. I don't. Right now I am angry Optimus. Angry at myself, the world, and especially Megatron. This would make me reckless and useless on a stealth mission."

She glared out the hatch, "Right now, I simply want to kill and destroy."

Optimus blinked and stepped back, giving a respectful nod, "I understand…" He sometimes forgot how different Voidwalker was from her previous persona. She wasn't Celestial Prime… not anymore.

Bulkhead laughed and slammed his fists together as he approached the rear hatch, "Alright, who's ready to lay the smack down on-"

Void flashed past Bulkhead and flipped out of the rear of the ship, plummeting face first to the ground below. Bulkhead and Bumblebee gaped after her, shocked by her sudden jump. The femme was clearly nuts.

Starscream smirked and walked past the stunned bots, "I believe she was ready." he noted, and then jumped out after her, transforming to jet mode mid-air. His engines roared to life and he went screaming after Voidwalker.

Bulkhead and Bumblebee exchanged looks. The scout shrugged his shoulders, **"I wasn't planning on getting old anyway."**

"Ha!" Bulkhead clapped him on the shoulder, "Good point Bee! Let's see if we can't get in on the fun!"

The two ran for the exit and leaped out after Voidwalker and Starscream. Unlike Void, who had dove straight to the ground and landed without a sound, Bee and Bulk spread their arms, letting their wider frames slow their velocity down. At the last moment they reoriented their feet under them and hit the ground.

The earth shook under the dual impacts, ash and dust shooting up into the air. Both bots stood up and rolled their shoulders. Bee spared a look at the ship as it quickly approached the looming form of Darkmount that towered over them.

The scout craned his head back and back and back, optics going wide, **"…I forgot how big this place was…" **he beeped.

Bulkhead spared the place a glance and smirked, "That's why we're out here. So Optimus and the others have as much time to get in as possible. Now come on, let's go meet up with Voidwalker."

The two mechs walked forward through the ashen desert landscape towards Voids LZ. The setting sun set their armor ablaze, flashing and gleaming in the dimming light. It was no surprise to any of them when they heard the sound of blasters, followed by the roar of engines.

Both bots quickly ran for cover, just in time for a barrage of violet Energon bolts to batter at the large boulders acting as their shelter. Three snow white jets zoomed on by overhead, leaving thin contrails in the air.

Bulkhead looked up as they circled around, "Well, Optimus needed a distraction. I guess we gave him one." he said. Then he shifted his servos into blasters and opened fire on the drones screaming towards them.

* * *

Back aboard the ship, Optimus had moved to the cockpit where Ironhide was busy trying to maneuver around Megatron's anti-air defenses. The floor tilted to the side, forcing Optimus to grab at the door frame for a moment. It leveled out fair enough, but it the streaks of purple and red flashing past the cockpit made it obvious they weren't out of the fire yet. Ironhide wore a very angry expression as he maneuvered, muttering curses best not repeated.

From the cargo bay, Jazz yelled at him, "Yo Ironhide! Are ya flying the ship or trying to make me empty my fuel tank!? Because I could go with either!"

"Shut it Jazz, or I'll come back there and weld yer yap shut!" Ironhide bellowed back, before sparing Optimus a look.

"Prime." he grumbled.

Optimus took a moment to watch as Darkmount rapidly approached them. He was scanning the surface for landing pads or openings of any kind. Darkmount was capable of holding hundreds of cons at once. There had to be a landing pad somewhere.

"Can you pass by that platform?" Optimus suddenly asked, pointing at one of the four pillars that made up the base of the spire. A lone platform jutted out a few dozen feet from the surface, and two Vehicons where busy lounging about refueling on Energon cubes.

Ironhide smirked, "That depends, do you want me to slow down and get shot out of the sky, or keep going and _not _get blasted to slag?"

"Whichever is safer my friend." Optimus replied.

That made Ironhide give a rather dangerous looking grin, "Fast and low it is!"

Kicking the accelerator into over drive, the ship zipped around one of the protruding spikes from the spire, before shooting towards the platform. Ironhide leaned forward with narrowed optics, before banging on the bulkhead behind him.

"Opening the hatch, get ready for a hot drop!" he warned.

In the cargo bay, Arcee stood up from one of the wall chairs and approached the open hatch. Jazz walked up next to her and smirked, "Ya ready for this?"

"I don't know," Arcee shrugged, "Think you can keep up with me?"

Jazz put a servo to his chest as if offended, "Oh, Arcee. Now that was just rude. Overestimating yerself like that."

Despite the severity of the situation and their target, Arcee couldn't help but smile. Ironhide's voice crackled in their comm's. _"Platforms approaching, but I can't slow down for ya. You'll need to jump in three… two… one!"_

Arcee and Jazz both leaped from the ship and plummeted towards the platform below. They both went in at a head first dive at first, letting the wind buffet them both. Jazz let out an excited whoop and grabbed his ankles forming into a ball. Then, right before he hit, he extended his hands and rolled forward with the landing, popping straight up at the nearest con and knocking its block off.

Beside him, Arcee landed on _top _of the nearest con, crushing it under pede and rolling forward with her blasters extended. There were only two cons on the platform though, so they where alone. Arcee retracted her blasters and stood up, looking after the quickly vanishing transport.

Jazz shifted his own servo into a smooth blaster while his other servo remained normal. He walked towards the shut door and started messing with the terminal next to it, grumbling to himself while he did.

"Come on… blue wire goes there… green fragment there… that'll wake the fortress up… that's classified… Ah! There we go!" the door slid open soundlessly.

Jazz smirked and gestured at the door, "Femme's first!"

Arcee shook her head and marched forward, dragging Jazz in by the chest plate, "Let's just go." she growled, letting him go.

"Hehehe," Jazz brushed himself off and followed after Arcee into Darkmount, "This is gonna be 32 flavors of fun, I can already tell!"

* * *

Back with Optimus and Ironhide, the duo were currently speeding up the side of the spire, desperately trying to get to the cannons. The sooner they got to the top, the better. If they were taken down, they could join the battle and assist the other Autobots in distracting Megatron from the two infiltrators in his base.

But getting up to the cannons seemed easier said than done, for Megatron had unleashed a swarm of Vehicons and the new white drones after them. It wasn't even fair for the duo, as the sheer amount of blaster fire that filled the air quickly disabled their ship, leaving Ironhide to fight for control of the ship and try to land it on the spire.

"Come on you piece of slag!" Ironhide growled, slamming his servo on the now smoking console. Every terminal was flashing bright red, an alarm was screaming in their audio receptors, and smoke was filling the cabin. The ship was not going to make it.

Optimus put a servo on Ironhide's shoulder, getting the former wreckers attention, "I believe it may be time for us to abandon ship Ironhide."

Ironhide looked out the cockpit and cursed, "Holy scrap!" a large section of the spire was jutting out from the side, right where the ship was hurtling.

The large mech quickly undid his harness and hopped out of his seat. He and Optimus ran for the exit, feeling the entire ship groan and shriek in protest for the amount of fire power being poured onto its hull. The fact that the ship was still holding together was nothing short of a miracle.

Both bots reached the open hatch and leaped out just in time. The starship hit the side of Darkmount and detonated into a ball of blue fire. The shockwave knocked them both end over end. Optimus struggled to steady himself while bits of debris rained around them both, trailing smoke and fire from their ends.

Optimus saw a platform quickly approaching and realized he was moving to fast to readjust himself in time. Oh this was going to-

Something grabbed his arm and Optimus jolted to a stop, hanging off one of the four beams that rose up from the lower section of the tower and rose up to the blossoming cannons.

"I got ya Prime!" Ironhide growled. Optimus looked up and saw his old friend holding onto his wrist with one servo, while the other was buried in the metal plating that made up the ashen skin of Darkmount.

With a groan, Ironhide started pulling Optimus out, letting the Prime get a hold of his senses and place his feet against the wall. He shifted his other servo into a blade and stabbed it into the wall, feeling it catch on something and hold him there. When Ironhide felt Optimus steady himself, he released the Prime and grabbed onto his makeshift handhold.

Both former wrecker and last of the Primes stayed motionless for a moment, holding onto the outside of what was a massive fortress towering thousands of feet off the ground. It was a long fall down to the ground, and while Autobots where durable, even a large fall could kill them if it was high enough.

The only positive for the two bots at the moment was the fact that Megatron's forces seemed to think they had died in the explosion. Optimus looked up where the ship had crashed and saw the blue fire eating into the side of the structure. Energon fires were deadly, burning hotter than most normal fires could ever hope to meet. That would keep Megatron and his forces occupied for a short time.

Optimus grunted and looked at his red comrade, "Ironhide, we need to get inside before Megatron's forces realize we did not perish."

Ironhide nodded, "No argument there Prime… Slight problem though. Where are we gonna go?"

Darkmount was a massive fortress comprised of a massive cylindrical center with various arches and spires sprouting from its side and rising upwards. About three thousand feet up it split into a total of four thick beams that lead into the multiple Energon Cannons that formed an accurate approximation of a metal flower.

Megatron's throne room rested above the cannons, but below them where the two sections of the fortress met, was Megatron's smelting pit. A massive bowl of molten slag that boiled and hissed, never losing its intense heat. And surrounding that where four large platforms where Megatron would dump prisoners or upstarts that where no longer of use to him.

And that smelting pit just so happened to be less than three hundred feet below them. All of this Optimus processed and filed in a matter of miliseconds before turning back to Ironhide once again.

"We go down, to the smelting pit. From there we work our way up, and pray that Megatron believes that we perished in that crash."

Ironhide snorted, "Really think that'll be the case."

Optimus scowled, "An Autobot can hope. Come, let us get started."

"Won't argue with that." Ironhide agreed, and began climbing down with Optimus towards the smelting pit below…

* * *

Megatron scowled at the various screens floating before his throne. Several showed the active status of Darkmounts defenses, another showed off the many blinking lights that represented his troops, and more represented an overall strategic map of the area. Which only showed four Autobot signatures outside the structure.

He folded his clawed servos together and scowled, "Where are the other Autobots?" he growled.

Starscream let out a nervous chuckle from the right side of Megatron's throne, "Perhaps they perished aboard that vessel along with Optimus Prime." he suggested hopefully.

Megatron's scowl deepened, "Optimus would not be so foolish to attempt an all out assault on my throne room. Not while the Kryptonian is in my custody. No, none of the Autobots where aboard that ship."

That made Starscream blink in surprise, "A-are you sure master?" there was always a chance that Optimus had made a tactical error. At least, Starscream hoped so, for his sake.

"Yes. I am." Megatron hissed. He pressed one of the many buttons on the arms of his throne. A video link to the large purple con Shockwave opened in front of him a moment later.

He was hunched over a table, sparks flying from a welding torch he was wielding, "Shockwave." Megatron said.

The con scientist paused and straightened up. He swiveled to face the video screen with his unblinking optic, and gave a curt bow,_ "Lord Megatron, how may I be of service?"_

Megatron leaned forward and tapped his chin with his long sharp servos, "The Autobots have launched an assault on Darkmount. My message seems to have frightened them into a preemptive strike. Tell me, is Project: Scourge complete?"

Shockwave spared a glance at his creation and turned back to Megatron, _" Project: Scourge is at 76% completion. In its current state, it could run at 80% maximum power."_

"Deploy it." Megatron ordered, "I want it set on an intercept course with Optimus Prime. He'll likely be making his way towards the Fusion Cannons followed by my Throne Room. I wish to surprise my old 'friend'." he practically spat that last word, feeling vile for ever referring to Optimus as such a thing.

Shockwave bowed without question, _"As you wish my liege. I shall deploy it at once." _he then ended the comm. link, and the holo-panel vanished.

Megatron leaned back in his chair and looked at the tactical overlay with that scowl still on his face. His crimson optics flicked to Starscream, "Take a squadron of Omni-cons, Starscream. Assault those upstart Autobots and put. Them. Down. Am I understood?"

A malicious grin split Starscreams faceplate, "Perfectly, Lord Megatron." he rasped, and walked off.

With him gone, Megatron turned to the left side of his throne where Soundwave stood, motionless and silent as ever. The communications officer only spared Megatron a brief glance of acknowledgement.

"Contact Knockout and tell him to meet Shockwave at his lab. When Project: Scourge is complete, I want them both moved to the Kryptonian Lab. I would be willing to bet that Optimus has sent a small team to try and rescue their ally so as to tip the battle in their favor. I wish to surprise them."

Soundwave gave a small nod, and his visor began flashing with various symbols. While this happened, Megatron leaned back against his throne with his servos folded together once again. Everything was falling into place. And if it worked out how he wanted it to, the last of the threats against the Decepticon cause would be extinguished before the end of the night.

"After millennia of fighting… it finally ends." he quietly chuckled to himself. Life was good at that moment. Life was _very _good.

* * *

"Find anything?" Arcee asked Jazz whilst looking around a nearby corner. The two had quickly infiltrated Darkmount with little to no sign of activity.

This either meant they managed to get in without raising any alarms… or they had raised every alarm and Megatron was planning their deaths as they spoke. Arcee tried not to worry to hard about that last possibility.

Instead she focused on Jazz, who was busy hacking into a con terminal as fast as he could. He gave her a sidelong glance as he typed, "Hacking con terminals ain't exactly my specialty Arcee. I just so happen to be more experienced with it than anyone else on the team. Unless you'd like to prove me wrong?"

Arcee looked back down the hall, "…I'm good." she admitted.

Jazz chuckled, "That's what I thought." and focused more on his typing once again.

Right as he finished typing on the terminal though, there was a loud '_thud, thud, thud!' _that made him and Arcee jump. Both activated their weapons and looked around worriedly. Surprisingly though, there was no sign of Con activity.

"Huh, weird." Jazz muttered, and lowered his weapon… Right as the thudding sound continued.

But this time, they were able to pinpoint the source. Both Jazz and Arcee looked at his chest plate, and Arcee raised an optic ridge. Jazz gave her an innocent and confused expression, before 'popping his hood' as it was.

And who should pop out gasping for air, than-

"Miko!?" Arcee hissed, seeing the girl gasping for air and leaning halfway out of Jazz's chest cavity. She was dressed in the uniform of her alter ego, Sairen. It was a tight black leather uniform with random slashes of pink across it, a bright white scarf and a mask over her eyes. Not the greatest costume, but it worked.

Poor Jazz looked so very confused at what he saw, that it was almost hysterical, "How the pit did you even get in there!?"

Miko wiped at her forehead, "Whew! Long story, not important." she gasped.

"Miko…" Arcee growled with her servo's on her hips.

The girl straightened up and started climbing out of Jazz's chest, "Hey, hey. I didn't _want _to do that, but you guys left me no choice. I could help you find Jack and keep him safe while you guys provided an escort. You know, so your hands aren't full."

Arcee pinched her nonexistent nose and sighed, "Consider yourself lucky we don't have a Ground Bridge right now, or I'd send you back to our base right now."

"You mean the one that Ratchet got blown up?" Miko said bitterly, before hopping down from Jazz's chestplate onto the ground.

Arcee let out a frustrated sigh, and began pacing, "That's not the point, you can't just… I mean…just…gah!"

Oh this complicated things. Now they'd have to keep Miko safe, make sure she didn't make too much noise, and keep the con sensors from picking up her-

"Found them!" Jazz reported in a harsh whisper.

"What? Where!?" Arcee demanded, rushing to the bots side. Miko flicked her wrists at the ground and propelled herself up next to them with a light blast of sonic energy. Sometimes her ability to generate sound waves from any part of her body came in handy.

Jazz pointed at a blueprint on screen with a solemn expression on his faceplate, "Shockwaves lab… Three floors up."

Arcee's faceplate went six shades of white in three seconds, before summing up the situation in one well placed word.

"…Scrap."

* * *

Optimus kicked a Vehicon off of his blade, and watched the now sparkeless corpse sink to the floor, Energon leaking from the hole in its chest. He and Ironhide had easily scaled Darkmount before infiltrating the structure and making their way up through Megatrons fortress and fighting through every group of Vehicons that got in their way.

Due to the need to remain stealthy, this had forced them to resort to melee only attacks. Something that would seem like a disadvantage, until one realized that Optimus was a master of hand to hand combat, and that Ironhide liked wielding a giant sword/mace/axe that pretty much offlined whatever he hit with it.

So it was safe to say that the pair had left a path of very dead Vehicons in their wake, along with a _lot _of spilled Energon. And now Optimus was busy hacking through the door before them as fast as his large servos could.

"Come on Prime," Ironhide urged, scanning the halls, "We've only got a handful of doors to go before we get to the main cannons!"

Optimus' royal blue optics briefly flicked towards Ironhide, "I am aware of that Ironhide. However, I would like to remind you that this is a very delicate procedure, one that cannot be rushed…"

Ironhide raised an optic ridge before scowling, "Don't get snippety with me Optimus." he grumbled.

A very faint smile spread over Optimus' faceplate, right as he finished typing in the last line of code. The doors hissed open to reveal another hallway. Optimus took a step back and shifted both servos into his bladed weapons.

"Come," he gestured to Ironhide, "We need to move quickly."

Ironhide nodded and took a single step forward, "You aren't going anywhere… Prime." a voice hissed, its voice heavily distorted and masked.

Both bots froze and looked back behind them at the dimly lit hall, and their optics went wide. A massive figure had suddenly appeared in the hall, towering a good head higher than Optimus, and was broader than Ironhide was. Nearly as thick too.

His chest and legs where covered in thick black plating, with violet highlights along the inside of his thighs and around his upper torso. His pedes where three pronged, with massive treads attached to the back of his calves. No armor adorned his shoulders or arms though, exposing his frame and thick bundles of chord that constituted Cybertronian muscle. Large vein like tubes covered the arms, filled with a sickly glowing purple liquid.

Every vein trailed back to the figures large back, where three massive cannons rose from his back. The two shortest ones rose above either shoulder, while the third rose high above his head. His helm was covered in a thick angular helm, with a stripe of purple running down his faceplate, where it met with a large segmented mask that hid the rest of his faceplate, save for two violet optics.

More tubes sprouted from the figures mask and swept around to his back. Two large tanks were attached to his back, and every violet tube on his body was attached to the tanks. This gave the impression that the con was some sort of deadly diver of some kind… Where it not for his massive size, it would've almost been laughable honestly.

But the con was so large, that Ironhide and Optimus instead immediately went into defense mode. The newcomer sent his violet gaze past Ironhide, and focused on Optimus instead. The intensity behind his eyes was… unnerving.

Optimus felt an odd feeling of disgust seeing this being before him. Something about him seemed unnatural and unclean. Like his very existence was an affront to nature. It was a feeling that Optimus noted and then filed away for later.

He had more important things to focus on, like getting rid of this new Decepticon, "Who are you?" he demanded.

The con chuckled. It was a sick grating sound that set both bots on edge, "Let us not stand on ceremony, Optimus Prime."

He raised his servo and scraped long Energon coated talons together, "I am that which was built to break you, Optimus Prime. I am your ultimate enemy, your destroyer. I am Scourge. And I was built to kill all Primes."

Revulsion filled Optimus at the way this con spoke so casually. What had Megatron done to twist a Cybertronian so? To make them speak as though they where nothing more than a machine built with a singular purpose? It only added to the unnerving feeling that Optimus got from this… Scourge.

The Prime opened his mouth to respond to Scourge and warn him to leave before things could escalate… Except that Ironhide put himself between Optimus and Scourge, setting his weapon to the side.

"So, you where built ta kill Primes, eh?" the bot slammed his fist into his open palm with a loud metallic _'clang!'_, and then cracked his neck.

Ironhide hefted his weapon onto his shoulder and looked back at Optimus, "Go, take out those cannons Optimus. I'm going to give Scourge an old lesson in hand to hand combat."

Optimus looked reluctantly between the two. Scourge looked to be practically frothing at the mouth at this point, ready to tear Optimus apart at the first chance he got. Ironhide on the other hand, remained calm and collected, while sending Scourge a challenging glare.

"I'm not going to argue this Prime. Go." Ironhide ordered.

Realizing that Ironhide wouldn't be convinced to change his mind, Optimus nodded, "Very well. Be careful Ironhide."

Ironhide chuckled and gestured for Optimus to leave with his free hand. Optimus took a single step back, then turned and ran down the hall towards the Fusion cannons. Scourge snarled angrily, and charged after Optimus. Ironhide slid between Scourge and Optimus though, and thrust his mace up, hitting Scourge hard in the chin.

The Decepticon stumbled back, grabbing at his chin and glaring at Ironhide. The former wrecker slammed his mace onto the terminal connected to the door. It shattered under the blow, shooting smoke and sparks into the air. Ironhide kept eye contact with Scourge the entire time, while the door slid shut behind him.

Once it did, he lifted his mace up and set it on end before him, with one servo resting on the hilt, "Alright then, Scourge," Ironhide barked and lifted the weapon back onto his shoulder, "Let's see what you're made of!"

With that, Scourge snarled and charged forward. Ironhide let out a fierce war cry and charged at Scourge as well, dragging his mace (Now shifted into an axe) behind him.

And then the two went at it.

**A/N: So how's THAT for a return to ATOA Book 3, eh? Did you guys like the return to my reboot? Was there enough action, humor, etc. For you? Well, I'll let you all in on a little secret. If you thought this chapter was good, next chapter? Yeah, it's going to take every awesome thing in this chapter and amp it up to eleven. I realized I had made the Kryptonians overshadow the Cybertronians a bit, so consider this me compensating for it by showing off exactly how badass all the other members of Team Prime really are.**

**So things to expect next chapter. Ironhide and Scourge beating the ever loving scrap out of each other, Arcee, Jazz, and Miko fighting their way through Darkmont to Shockwave's lab, and the remaining Autobots basically holding off an entire army of Decepticons.**

**Things are going to get awesome folks. Hold onto your pants.**

**Oh, and remember to let me know what you thought of this chapter with a review or PM me with new ideas. **

**Bye!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Battle of Darkmount

_Darkmount, Nevada…_

Kara started when she felt the entire lab suddenly shake, "What was that!?" she yelped, looking around. The lab had never shaken before like that as far as Kara knew. Darkmount was a stable structure, and it would take a _lot _for it to shake like that.

The Kryptonians mind went into overdrive as she thought up reasons as to why the base had shook like that. Either Megatron's weapons installed on it where bigger and more powerful than she initially thought, Knockout had blown something up on accident, or… or…

"The Autobots!" she cheered, feeling a smile cross her face. They had come to rescue her from Darkmount! She knew they would finally come!

Her victory was very short lived though, as she realized what that meant. Megatron would lock the base down if the Autobots where attacking, to prevent infiltrators. And if he had, that meant guards where going to be sent to the lab/prison where she was being held. And then there really would be no way for her to get out.

Kara cursed, "Scrap, scrap, scrap!" she cursed, and started thinking again.

First, she organized her thoughts into what she already knew. The Autobots where attacking Darkmount, Kara had one option to escape the table where she was being held (Though she was more than wary of trying it), and that Megatron would be posting guards in her prison soon enough. What she didn't know was far more extensive.

She had no idea how many of the Autobots where taking part in the attack. It could've just been Optimus, Arcee, and maybe Void, or it could be the entire team all at once. Either way, Kara had no way of knowing, which meant this assault could be very short lived. And then there were her guards. There wasn't a single method she could think of that would tell her how far or how close they were.

The last thing Kara wanted was to be caught midway through her escape by the cons, and being punished for it. Shockwave so far hadn't done anything… permanently damaging besides taking some blood samples, but that might have been because he only had her. If she tried to escape, Kara held no illusions about the fact that Shockwave would happily punish her for it if caught.

Kara bit on her lower lip nervously while she was weighing her options. What was she going to do!? She either stayed and hoped the Autobots would be able to fight their way to her, or risk escaping herself and hoping that Shockwave didn't catch her.

Another base shaking rumble immediately shook Kara from her thoughts and sort of made up her mind for her. Obviously the Bots where putting up one pit of a fight, and where tearing into the base. It might be worth the risk trying to escape from the lab just so she could meet them halfway.

Kara looked up at her left hand and let out a small whimper, "Damn it…" she whispered. The risk was too great. She had to escape, even if doing so was going to hurt like hell…

That thought almost made her snort. Kal would laugh if he saw how much of a wimp she was being. She shook her head. No he wouldn't. He'd support her the best he could, through this if there was no other option.

She could practically hear his words of encouragement now, _'C'mon Kara, you can do this…' _

"I can do this…" she repeated, taking a few steady breaths. Then Kara clenched her teeth together and tightened her left hand. Using her index fingers, she squeezed her thumb to her palm.

Nearly a year under Earth's yellow sun had lead to Kara's muscle density being at least double that of a normal humans. So while she was nicely built, even without yellow solar radiation, her strength was still the equivalent of a fully trained Navy SEAL'S. In other words, breaking the bone she needed to break would be easier than if she was still on Krypton.

Kara closed her eyes tightly and began pulling her hand against the cuff that restrained her arm to the table. The cool steel edge bit into her wrist making her shiver slightly. The girl ignored it and increased the strength on her thumb.

Then, there was a sudden loud snap, and Kara screamed.

* * *

Voidwalker vented heavily, sprinting through what was essentially a warzone. The entire area surrounding Darkmount was either covered in ash, filled with smoke, or on fire. Sometimes all three.

This made traversing the entire area a hazard in itself. The terrain was still as rocky as ever, making running through the area as much a hazard as the con that was trying to chase her down. One of Megatron's new Vehicons was screaming behind her in jet mode, occasionally peppering the ground around her with bolts of Dark Energon.

Void had quickly lost track of Bulkhead and Bee, while Starscream was shooting by overhead, pestering every drone he could and drawing their attention off the ground pounders. Which meant at the moment that Void was on her own dealing with her pursuer.

A smile passed over her scarred lips. She always worked best on her own. And really, anyone that knew what she was capable of should have felt sorry for the poor drone that thought that singling the rather large femme out was the worst mistake it could have possibly have made.

Optics quickly scanning over the environment, Void's smile widened into a smirk when she saw a section of raised earth up ahead. Rubble lay around it, suggesting that it had once been one of the many mesa's that surrounded Jasper. Megatron had no doubt torn it down purely as a show of power and a waste of Energon.

The rubble left behind though, was more important to Void. She winced when she felt the blistering heat of blaster fire exploding behind her, scorching the very edges of her armor. She ignored it and focused on the minefield of rubble ahead of her.

Without missing a beat, Voidwalker leaped forward towards the first boulder. Her pedes lightly touched the rocky surface before she bounced off of it and landed on another nearby boulder before jumping to the side onto another boulder. She repeated this several times, flitting from one rock to another. The drone behind her always just missed, reducing her previous position to molten rock.

One practically exploded under the heat, propelling Voidwalker even higher than she intended. By that point though, she'd reached the remains of the mesa and felt her pedes press against its side. Her knees bent down before springing her forward.

Void spun in midair, shifting both servos to blasters, and opened fire on the drone. It flared about trying to correct its course, but the sudden fire on its chassis caused it to collide with Voidwalker. The drone transformed when it did and they both went crashing to the ground.

Several plates of armor on her frame groaned and cracked under the impact, but Void rolled with it, kicking the drone off of her and flipping to her feet. The drone hit the ground and skid across it, digging both clawed servos into the ground. It looked up and growled at Voidwalker.

Voidwalker rolled her optics and reached into her subspace to produce a long golden spear in her servos, "Shut your vocal processor." she ordered. The thrust that impaled the drone was but a blur.

It's jaw went lax and it's head rolled to the side. A small bit of Dark Energon dripped out of its spark cavity, before Void ripped the spear from its chest and flicked the vile substance off of it. She returned it to her subspace and noted with a grin that Jazz had been right, Megatron's new forces where far less intelligent than his old ones.

She chuckled, "Millennia later, Megatron, and you're still as short sighted and arrogant as ever."

With that said, she left the corpse behind her and began walking off. The ashen clouds suddenly lit up in the distance and she frowned. Blasters could be heard going off again, which meant that one of the Autobots needed a little help. A small smirk stretched over her faceplate and she ran forward.

Her entire being spiraled down into a large black motorcycle that roared to life and sped across the desert landscape towards the source of conflict. Void weaved between large rocks and boulders until she was suddenly reaching the end of a large hill. Instead of slowing down, Void gunned her accelerator, watching as the landscape zoomed by.

And then, she went flying off the hill into the air. The motorcycle fell apart and reassembled itself into the large black femme who came crashing down on top of a standard Vehicon. Void stabbed her blade into its neck, offlining it, and turned her attention to the conflict at hands.

Bumblebee had been cornered by a group of drones behind a large boulder. Bulkhead was nowhere to be seen, and the remaining four drones combined fire power was quickly chipping through Bee's cover. The scout returned fire occasionally, but he was quite outnumbered.

Void crouched down, "Here we go." and sprang forward like a wild cat. Her right servo was shifted into a large bladed sword and her left servo remained clawed.

The drones had been unaware of her presence, and so her sudden flanking attack caught the first one off guard. Void impaled it through the shoulder, before raking her talons over its visor. Then she thrust both forward and ripped its processor out, letting it drop to the ground offline.

She didn't get anytime to savor her victory though, as the remaining drones turned to fire on her. Void backpedaled to avoid the fire, with limited effectiveness. Several shots pinged off her armor. There was a loud crack and Void winced as one of her armored plates that had been damaged from her earlier scuffle suddenly cracked apart.

"Scrap!" she rolled to the side behind Bumblebee's cover. The scout was staring up at her wide eyed while Void held her injured side.

It wasn't often one saw Voidwalker get injured. Void gave him a small smile, "Hello…" she slid down against the ground and rested her head against the rock, "Can you handle the rest of our guests please?"

Bee blinked and then nodded, **"I think I've got them. Not sure where Bulkhead went though…"**

Surprisingly the answer literally came in the form of a familiar wrecker yelling, "PAIN TRAIN COMING THROUGH!"

Both bots looked past their cover in time to see Bulkhead tackle two of the drones into a nearby rock. He snapped one's head in his arm while he pounded the other one to dust with his mace. Then he stood up and looked at the remaining drone. It was still holding its blaster pointed at him.

Bulkhead shook his head at the drone, "Buddy, do you really wanna go through with this?"

The drone stabbed it's blaster at Bulkhead, visor flaring red. The wrecker arched an optic ridge before grinning, "Well, I'd look behind ya first bub."

If the Vehicon eyes, it would've blinked. Actually, that was all it would've done. Because another gravelly voice echoed through the air, "TRANSFORM!"

It turned around in time to see a glowing red saber pass clean through its chest. Starscream skid past the drone with his crimson saber held to one side and his head bowed. The drone stood there without moving for several moments. Starscream stood up and attached his saber back to his shoulder.

And then the Vehicon fell forward in two pieces, spilling brilliant blue Energon everywhere. Starscream looked over at his fellow Cybertronians and gave a small smirk.

"It would seem that we've all managed to regroup once again." he noted, grey optics briefly looking at the cover Bee and Void were using.

Void walked out from behind her cover, holding her side still, and looked at the two, "We need to find a safer location than this. Somewhere to hunker down and fortify. If we split up again, Megatron will have us overwhelmed."

Bulkhead laughed at that, "Got a point there Void. I saw a big cluster of rocks a click or so back. Single entrance in, good covering of debris. Con's could only come at us from above or the front."

"Very well…" Void gave a faint nod, before looking up at Darkmount, "We shall make our stand there to buy Optimus and the others the time that they need…"

* * *

Optimus continued his way through the halls of Darkmount, hearing the distant and all too familiar clashing of combat echoing through the halls. Ironhide had engaged Scourge in full and was holding his own well it seemed. For the moment anyway.

Ironhide was a tough veteran soldier, Optimus knew that for a fact. Pit, the bot had been a soldier before Optimus had even crawled out of the Well of Allsparks. But something about Scourge worried Optimus.

The massive con seemed built for combat. He looked massive, intimidating, and if the clashing and shaking of Darkmount was any indicator, he was more than capable of backing up that intimidating appearance. It almost made Optimus wonder if Ironhide was up to the challenge.

The Prime shook off such thoughts, he had an objective to finish. When the cannons where disabled, then he would worry about Ironhide. For the time being though, Optimus continued through the strangely empty halls. It didn't make sense that Optimus wouldn't encounter anymore Decepticons, until he took Scourge into account.

Odds were that Megatron had expected Scourge to delay Optimus or even defeat him. He likely didn't even know about Ironhide yet. Which meant that Optimus had a very small advantage at the moment. He just couldn't squander it.

Optimus reached the final door and quickly hacked into the terminal. Con code was relatively easy to hack, and so in a few seconds the door slid open for Optimus. He turned to walk through, and found a Fusion Cannon pointed directly at him, along with a half dozen blasters.

Megatron smirked, "Optimus, how wonderful to see you. Please, come in… take a seat."

* * *

Ironhide let out a surprised grunt of surprise when Scourge kicked him in the chest, knocking him back into the wall. His weapon flew out of his servo and went skittering off into the darkened hallway. Ironhide only managed to curse before Scourge came charging at him, letting out a thundering roar.

The wall crunched and cracked when Scourge made impact. Ironhide rolled to his feet next to the con, quickly scooping his weapon off the floor and smirking. Scourge was one tough piece of slag, Ironhide wouldn't deny that. But he was inexperienced.

Scourge growled and pulled himself from the wall and glared at Ironhide with sickly purple optics, "You are skilled. For an old mech."

Ironhide shook his head, "Really? That's the best insult you can come up with, slaghead?" the red bot twirled his sword in his hands. The long silver and red blade shifted and creaked before taking on the form of a large axe that Ironhide comfortably rested on his shoulder.

Unlike other bots, who's melee weapon either compressed itself or was built into them, Ironhide decided to make his own weapon. Oh sure, he had his own built in weapons, but the one on his shoulder? That was a custom designed weapon, built to fit any situation that Ironhide found himself in. A T-Cog built into its hilt allowed it to quickly transform from sword, to axe, to mace.

So regardless of who he was fighting, Ironhide always had the perfect melee weapon to deal with. He'd use some of his longer ranged weapons to deal with Scourge, but the hall was way too cramped to risk setting one of _those_ off. Yet. So he settled for his big battleaxe instead while wearing a comfortable smirk.

Scourge scowled behind his mask and began grinding his talons together. This produced a low screeching sound that made Ironhide visibly wince. The frequency of sound they reached was enough to mess with his audio receptors.

"Okay, ow ow ow!" Ironhide grabbed at one audio receptor.

When he did, Scourge took his advantage and let out another roar of fury, charging right at Ironhide.

The big red mech only had time to curse before Scourge came charging right into him. His barbell shaped fist came swinging up and hit Ironhide right in the chin, spewing sparks everywhere. The bot felt himself fly up into the air, before another of Scourges massive fists wrapped around his head and slammed Ironhide right into the ground.

Steel plating buckled under the impact, and sparks went flying everywhere. Scourge let out a sickly laugh and began dragging Ironhide _through _the floor. He spoke in his sickly voice once again.

"So confident in your strength, Ironhide." he grumbled, "Big and strong mech coming to save the day."

With a flick of his wrist, Scourge sent Ironhide flying down the hall. The poor bot barely managed to land on his feet. He actually stumbled back a few feet before slamming his axe into the floor, sending sparks flying everywhere. Ironhide came to a skidding stop and slumped forward breathing hard.

Scourge slowly stalked toward him, rolling his shoulders as he did, "But what happens when your strength fails? When you find a mech built to be stronger than you in every way?"

Ironhide spat out a bit of Energon from his mouth and began to stand. Scourge chuckle and clenched his servo tightly. It suddenly shifted and twisted, spiked armor plating covering it. The wrist became loose and his hand slowly fell to the floor, held attached to his arm by a long thick steel cable.

Scourge began to casually spin the massive flail to his side while vicious pleasure twinkled in his optics, "I was built to kill Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots. That is my purpose. Tell me, Autobot. What chance do you have holding against me?"

A large shadow fell over the struggling Ironhide. He looked up to see Scourge standing over him, slowly raising his flail overhead. Ironhide made no move to defend himself and Scourge smirked. For such a big tough bot, he was far more bark than bite.

"That's what I though. Now perish!" Scourge brought his flail down to break Ironhide's helm open.

Instead of that though, the giant mech's optics tripled in size when his arm stopped dead. Ironhide smirked and tightened his grip on Scourge's forearm. He got his other leg under him and slowly began to stand. His servo tightened into a fist, which he slowly pulled back.

"Kid, who in the pit do you think trained Optimus?" Ironhide laughed. And then his own fist flashed forward, striking Scourge across the faceplate.

The giant stumbled back in surprise, grasping at his mask with one servo while his flail turned into a large triple barreled blaster. He fired wildly at Ironhide, leaving thick scorch marks all over the hallway. Ironhide himself either let the blasts bounce off his armor, or knocked them away with his sword.

"I've been around for so long it makes _me _dizzy just thinking about it." Ironhide rushed forward and jumped up, punching Scourge across the faceplate once again.

The moment the mech's pedes hit the floor, he began to rapidly pound Scourge along his midsection. A barrage of fast and hard blows that left small dents in Scourge's armor and put the mech on the defensive. Scourge just kept backing up more and more, letting out pained yells as his armor was quite efficiently turned from a formidable wall of steel into nothing but scrap.

Ironhide jumped back for a moment and let Scourge sway back and forth. A little bit of Dark Energon began to leak from his damaged armor. Ironhide ignored the wave of nausea that rolled over him, instead stabbing his sword into the ground and pointing his hand at Scourge.

The steel and wiring of his forearm broke apart, shifting, spinning, and rising into place. When it was finished, Scourge's optics went wide, "Is that…"

Ironhide smirked and looked at the squat triangular weapon that his arm had transformed into, "A Thermo Rocket Launcher? It was." his smirk widened into a grin, "I made a few custom changes of my own though. For example, my rocket launcher doesn't fire one missile at a time."

The ends of the weapon suddenly flared a faint yellow and the caps flipped open to reveal three cone shaped missiles, "It fires three." Ironhide said simply.

Scourge visibly gulped, "Scrap."

"Sounds about right." Ironhide chuckled, and fired the weapon. His arm recoiled from the kickback while smoke hissed from the three rockets that were fired at Scourge. They screeched towards the mega-con in a spiral formation. He only managed to let out a yell and cover his faceplate before they impacted.

The following explosion was so bright that the entire hall was lit up with light. The immediate paint in the area peeled off the floor and Ironhide himself had to cover his optics so he wasn't temporarily blinded. And that wasn't even taking the shockwave into account. Only his mass managed to keep Ironhide on his pedes. The walls around Scourge had buckled outwards, one even shattering under the explosion.

When it finally died down, Ironhide lowered his arm to see a column of smoke… that Scourge was standing in.

"No way…" Ironhide whispered. He had never seen a con short of a combiner survive something like that…

Scourge lowered his harms from his faceplate as the smoke around him cleared. He was far from unharmed like Ironhide had feared though. Many of the chords on running along his arms had been severed and where hanging loosely from his limbs. His entire midsection was covered in tiny cuts that bled Dark Energon, and he was coated in a thick layer of soot. The only thing on his body not damaged, where the glowing violet tubes that lined his body.

After looking at himself for several moments, Scourge clenched his fists and looked back at Ironhide with a glare that could've killed. The massive mech rolled his shoulders for a moment getting the feeling back into his body. Ironhide quickly tried reloading his weapon while Scourge shook himself.

"Well, that happened." Scourge growled, cracking his neck for a moment. He then took several steps towards Ironhide.

"But you're still outmatched Autobot." the con continued. The tubes around his body began to glow brightly and tiny bubbles raced through them.

Ironhide started stepping back while Scourge stood where he was, hunching over and growling loudly, "I was built for killing, and nothing more." Scourge growled.

The chords on his arms suddenly flared and began to bulge. Their metal sheathing groaned in protest, and yet it continued to grow anyway. They doubled in size, then tripled in size, and finally quadrupled in size. Ironhide felt his optics grow wide as dinner plates.

The plates along Scourges mid section that he'd dented suddenly filled back out and then began to bulge as if something was pushing against it from within. Scourge groaned and his legs buckled, letting him fall to his knees. And then, he began to grow. His already bulging muscle mass wasn't enough, his entire chassis grew taller and wider. He could be heard creaking and groaning in pain from the change, his face a mask of pain.

And then he stopped and Ironhide gulped. Scourge was now twice as tall as he was and about three time as thick. His entire body was bulging with chords of muscle fibers and his optics were practically ignited in violet fire.

The con took one step forward and the ground bent under his weight. He slammed his fists together, causing thunder to boom from them. His twisted optics fell on Ironhide and he smirked under his mask.

"I'm going to break you." he declared.

And then he came barreling down on Ironhide…

* * *

"I can't believe you snuck on board." Arcee grumbled as she, Jazz, and Miko wandered through the halls. The girl walked between her and Jazz with her arms crossed.

Arcee had quickly realized that they couldn't send Miko back to base because they no longer had a Ground Bridge available. Which meant they were stuck with the girl until they found and rescued Kara and Jack. Needless to say, Arcee was not happy about that. And Jazz was just plain confused as to how Miko got into his chest in the first place.

"I told you, Jack and Kara are my friends." Miko grumbled, sending Arcee a look, "You're not the only one who cares about Jack you know."

Arcee returned her glare, "You think I don't know that? But the difference is I haven't been captured by cons. You might have those sonic powers Miko, but they won't be very useful on a _stealth _op."

Jazz shook his head while Miko began to argue back against what Arcee said. He never understood femmes all that well. In his own mind they where way too high maintenance for a guy like him. That didn't mean he didn't understand why the others cared so much for their mates. Ironhides care for his former lover Chromia was obvious to Jazz, and he sincerely hoped the big guy found someone who could replace her.

But when it came to femmes themselves? They just confused the smooth talking mech to no end. So he just let the two argue while they walked. After all, his sensors had shown there were no cons within range of them, and he had shut down the sensors in the general area. So they where in the clear for now.

That was until his HUD suddenly flared to life, flashing two words across his vision: **Organic Detected.**

Jazz stopped and put a hand out to stop the other two as they reached a bend in the hall. They both gave him an annoyed look, "What?" Miko demanded.

"Shush." Jazz ordered and crouched next to the corner. He slowly peered around its edge and activated his thermal sights on his visor. He never got why the cons liked shrouding everything in darkness. In all honesty, it seemed very impractical and didn't really help with the whole 'evil warlords' thing.

But with his thermal vision, Jazz quickly picked up the organic his long range sensors had detected. A small form was stumbling along the side of the hall with its hand carefully held under its arm.

Jazz smiled, "I think we found one of your Kryptonians. Doesn't look to be in good shape though." he reported.

Arcee's eyes went wide, "What?" she then peered around the corner and her optics went even wider.

"Kara!" she yelled in a hushed whisper.

Very quickly and quietly, she sprinted around the corner towards the young Kryptonian stumbling through the hall. Kara felt the vibrations in the floor though and looked up in time to see Arcee skid to a stop in front of her.

A relieved smile crossed over Kara's face and she fell to her knee's, "You guys came…" she rasped in a tired voice, "I knew you would…"

Arcee warily reached out a servo before retracting it, "What happened here?" she asked, looking the poor girl over.

Kara let out a tired sigh and looked behind Arcee to see Jazz running up next to her. Miko was sitting in his hands and jumped off when they got close enough, "Kara! You're alright!" Miko yelled, running to Kara and nearly crushing her in a big hug.

"Ow ow ow!" Kara hissed, making Miko let go.

"Oh… sorry…" Miko apologized.

Kara shook her head and took in a steady breath, "It's fine…" she then looked at the others with a small smile, "I can't believe you actually came…"

Arcee frowned and rubbed her helm, "Well of course we came, but… how did you escape from the cons?"

Instead of responding, Kara winced and pulled her left hand out from under her right arm. It was bound tight by a few pieces of metal and the remains of her cape. Kara held it out for examination and explained.

"There's a bone… in the Kryptonian hand that if broken, lets it bend in ways it normally couldn't…" she didn't elaborate further. Miko and Arcee stared at Kara in shock.

"Dude… you broke your own hand?" Miko asked.

Kara nodded and carefully put it under her arm again, "I did… it was how I escaped… Once it was free, I just accessed my belt. The cons aren't too bright when it comes to organic appliances or are clothing it seems. They let me keep my suit and my belt…"

Jazz let out a low whistle, "I gotta admit, you are one clever and determined organic. By the by, names Jazz. Nice ta meet ya Kara."

Kara smiled and gave a bow of her head, "Nice to meet you too Jazz…" she said tiredly. And it was no wonder she was so tired. While not in awful condition, it was obvious Kara had been through the ringer. Her cape was torn to the point that it only came down to the end of her shoulder blades, while the rest of her suit was covered in a fine layer of ashes, and covered in small cuts, some of them bleeding underneath. Her face was pale and tired with tear stains lining the outside of her face. All in all, Kara looked like she'd been to hell and back, and then some.

Which left one question, "Kara, where's Jack?"

The girls smile faded and she hung her head, "He's… he's not here Arcee, okay? When the cons captured me, Megatron demanded I tell him where Kal-El was… I told him I had no idea… I thought he was with you guys leading a counter assault…"

Arcee felt the energy drain from her when Kara said that. Jack hadn't been captured by Decepticons. They didn't know where he was, the US government didn't know, and the Autobots didn't know. No one knew where Jack was.

Her servo tightened slightly, and one question filled her processor. One all consuming question that she needed an answer too.

Where.

Was.

Jack?

* * *

_Unknown Location…_

Electricity rippled through his body, tearing at his already weakened physique and making Jack scream in pain. He had lived his entire life without knowing but the briefest glimpses of pain. For most of his life he had been invulnerable to any form of damage, and knew nothing of what pain felt like.

And now, for the past few days, he and pain had made up for lost time. All Jack had known was pain. Emotional pain, physical pain, and every form of pain in between. Now he was tired, hurt, bleeding, hungry, and half naked. His super suit had long been taken from him and he was clad in only a loose pair of pants while his arms and legs where bound down to the table and pair of surgical lights where shining down on him.

Jack was left blind, in pain, and so very confused about everything. For several days, at least he thought it had been days, it was hard to keep track of time, he had been tortured. Sometimes for information, sometimes when they wanted to learn a little more about biology, or in this latest case… just because.

The teen blinked the tears out of his eyes while his chest rose and fell from the dull throbbing pain that he'd become quite accustomed too. He weakly looked up at himself and nearly cringed. Days without exposure to sunlight had made him vulnerable. Exposure to Dark Energon had made him weak. The two elements combined had left his entire skin a pale sickly yellow. His muscled form was starting to lose definition and he was steadily growing thinner and thinner. He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten.

Scars littered his body, all of them freshly healed or sewn shut. All so that the man circling him could continue to hurt him. The man walked on the outskirts of the light with his arms crossed behind his back and his head held high. His body was covered in Kevlar armor and steel plates. He wore a black and orange mask with one eye obscured. The other was a pale purple violet that made the teen shiver.

The man chuckled at Jack's pain and spared him a glance, "You seem uncomfortable Jack. Are you uncomfortable?"

Jack lay there breathing hard. Moving was an effort, talking was an effort. His eyes drifted towards the man, "…Why…?" he asked. It was all he could do before his parched throat gave out on him.

The man paused, "Why what, Jack? Be specific."

Jack took a moment to swallow and wet his throat, "Why…are you doing this… Slade…?" he rasped.

The man, Slade, smirked beneath his mask, "Why am I doing this? You mean this?"

He snapped his fingers and Jack screamed in pain again. Something was hurting him, flowing through his entire body. Everything hurt. There was no part of his body that hadn't been hurt in some way. His scars flared painfully while Jack screamed and arched his back. Tears flowed freely from his eyes.

Slade snapped his fingers and the pain stopped. Jack fell against the table breathing hard and looked at Slade with bleary eyes. He repeated his question, "…W…w-wh…y…?"

His voice was filled with pain, something that made Slade chuckle, "Why? Because, my former apprentice, you did the same to me. I watched as everything I worked for crumbled. My hard work destroyed because of you. And at the end of it all, you left me broken and bleeding, humiliated by a child."

Slade walked into the light and grabbed Jack by the chin. He brought his face up to stare at Slades expressionless, "I want to repay that feeling child." Slade hissed, "I want you to feel what I felt, multiplied by a thousand fold. You will never feel a moment without pain or humiliation. And when you are broken, when you are at the edge of death, at the edge of sweet release, I will pull you back."

With a grunt, he released Jacks face and stood up, "I will inflict pain on you until you scream for help. And when no one comes, I'll keep inflicting pain. And no matter how much you beg, no matter how much you cry for it to stop, it won't. I will never let it stop Jack."

Jack let out the tiniest of sobs and Slade smirked, "Well then. I'm glad we understand each other. Now then, where were we? Ah, right."

He snapped his fingers again. Jack screamed again, feeling the pain fly up his arms and legs first. They felt as though liquid steel was being poured through his veins, burning every piece of flesh and tissue he had. The pain flowed into his chest and hit his heart. Jack's screaming grew louder and his back arched. He struggled in vain against the cuffs straining him down.

This was worse than anything Slade had unleashed on him yet. Jack actively cried while the pain tore at his body. He couldn't handle it, he wasn't able to. No one could have handled the pain he was feeling.

Jack knew it, but some small part of him, an instinctual part, broke free. For the longest time Jack had tried to keep Slade from making him beg or call for help. He did not want to give the man the benefit. But if there was even a tiny sliver of chance that it would have worked-

The pain arched through him with renewed force and Jack screamed as loud as he could, "PLEASE! SOMEONE HELP ME! GOD PLEASE, ANYONE! M-Make it s-stop!"

He started sobbing and screaming at the same time, taking gasping breaths in between, "Slade, please stop!" he begged, "Please, I'll do anything! Just make it stop!"

But he didn't. Slade just watched silently as Jack screamed and begged in pain. He looked at the small room behind him where two technicians where hidden behind a one way mirror. They both looked at their employer. Slade pointed a finger up.

Increase the threshold.

Jack's screams grew even louder and Slade smiled to himself. Revenge was a sweet, sweet, sweet dish.

**A/N:…Um…so… yeah. Jack's finally made an appearance. And for those of you wondering… Oh yes, Slade will get what's coming to him for this. Trust me, if some of you thought his exit in the original crossover with Elhini was too light… He'll get one befitting what he's done here. Hell, even I think this is too far. And I wrote the scene!**

**As for the rest, the Siege of Darkmount ends next chapter (Which I hope to have out tomorrow) and things will end in a very interesting way. Oh, and I renamed the story, what do you think of the new name? Leave your answers and guesses in the reviews, and remember to leave reviews or PM me with questions guys. The more reviews I get, the more determined I am to get the next chapter out. Otherwise, hope you guys enjoyed, and bye!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Fall of Darkmount

_Darkmount, Nevada…_

The base of Darkmount was shrouded in ash and smoke, and the ground ran with the neon blue liquid that was Energon. Streams of Dark Energon ran in rivulets alongside the substance, slowly corrupting it until veins of violet neon seemed to be flowing towards the fortress itself as though feeding the colossal structure.

These streams all originated from a single location right at the base of Darkmounts firing range. A small out cropping of rocks where the multi-colored Autobots had holed up and where currently exchanging fire with the Decepticons. Bright blue and red blaster fire was exchanged from both forces.

Vehicons and their superior Dark Energon counterparts where slowly crowding around the outcropping where Bulkhead, Voidwalker, and Bumblebee had taken shelter. Starscream was screeching by overhead, strafing the ground forces or turning his attention onto the air forces that Megatron seemed to be holding in reserve for the moment.

One Vehicon went down under three blasts from Voidwalkers blaster and lay there twitching. Her blaster started hissing and let off a gout of steam. The black armored femme fell back behind cover and cursed while her blaster cooled down. Every standard blaster had a set firing rate to it so that the Cybertronian wielding it wouldn't accidently overheat it and be left out of the fight for several precious seconds.

Voidwalker though, had no such thing as 'standard' weapons, and her blasters where no exceptions. Her blasters where designed to fire as fast as she possibly could. This meant her firing rate was incredibly fast, even for an Autobot, but on the flipside she was at the mercy of the laws of thermodynamics.

Ordinarily that meant she could get a few dozen shots out before she'd start overheating. But she and the other Autobots had been holding against the Decepticons for close to an hour now. The sheer volume of superheated Energon being blasted from either side had left the air hot and ragged.

Her internal thermometer showed that the external temperature of the atmosphere was reaching close to 115 degrees Fahrenheit. In other words, it was _really _hot out now. Which meant that her blasters where going to need to expel their excess heat more and more.

Void looked around the edge of her cover at the approaching Vehicons and cursed. She wasn't built to take on an entire army by herself, not anymore. When she'd been reformatted it was to make sure that any engagement was short and efficient. That made her a dangerous opponent in the first few minutes of an engagement. Any longer though and a standard Cybertronian would easily be able to overpower her.

Bulkhead looked over and saw Void's blaster expelling heat. He scowled and lumbered out into the opening, firing both blasters at once while roaring a challenge at the various Decepticons. The landscape before them was hilly and pockmarked with various craters and scorch marks. It was a true warzone and Bulkheads sudden assault only made the environment worse.

"Come on you frag heads! That the best you got!?" he bellowed over the steady _'thwew thwew thwew' _of his blasters. Cons fell under his onslaught before they refocused their fire on him.

A few red blaster bolts bounced off the wreckers armor before he decided to duck back behind his cover venting hard. He brushed some scorch marks off his armor and sank down, "Never knew Megatron had so many drones." he muttered.

Bee popped back behind his cover and rubbed his wrists, **"They're going to overwhelm us. We should've stayed mobile, that's where we're at our strongest."**

"No." Voidwalker shook her head and leaned against her cover, "The sheer number of Megatrons forces would overwhelm us within minutes. This is our best option for the moment."

**"Are you kidding!?" **Bee whirred, **"We're outnumbered, outgunned, and some of us are injured!" **he pointed a servo at the gash in Voids side where Energon was slowly oozing free.

Void spared the wound a brief glance before looking back out of her cover. At the moment, Starscream was peppering the ground forces with Energon bolts, but it was just a minor distraction. Especially when several drones transformed and took off after him.

"We have no ground bridge and Ironhide's ship was destroyed." Voidwalker pointed out, "The most we can manage now, Bumblebee, is a final last stand."

Bulkhead ducked his head slightly. Bee's optics where wide and his doorwings twitched slightly, **"A final stand… but… what about the others?"**

Voidwalker's blaster whirred back to life and she pointed it out of cover, "The most we can do is hope that they find Kara and Kal-El before Megatron's forces overwhelm us. If they don't…" the femme let her words trail off. She didn't need to tell either Bee or Bulkhead what would happen. They already knew.

Bulkhead's servos tightened and he looked back up, "Well, better make them work their tailpipes off then, eh? I don't know about you, but I ain't going down without a fight!"

Bee blinked at Bulkhead before he nodded, **"Alright, good point. Let's make Megatron work for his victory."**

A small smile crossed Voidwalkers faceplate before it faded, "Form up then and provide suppressing fire. Bulkhead, pick your targets and mark them. My systems are overheating, I'll handle any Decepticons that are injured."

Bee activated his blasters, and Bulkhead's servos shifted, "Alright, sounds good to me!" he boomed, and began firing from behind his cover.

While Bulkhead began cutting down Vehicons and their white armored counterparts, Bee fired randomly from behind cover. The random bouts of blue fire licking at the con's armor was enough that it forced some of them to duck behind rubble or jump into a few of the scorched craters in the ground before returning fire.

Voidwalker sighted down at a nearby con that had a nasty burn along its ribs. Energon leaked from the wound and it was limping slightly. Despite that, it was also pointing its blaster at Bulkhead. Specifically his helm.

_'I think not.' _Voidwalker thought. There was a silent discharge of Energon, and the con fell to the side, offline, a moment later.

This process repeated several times from there. Bumblebee provided suppressing fire on the cons, forcing the smarter of them to take cover while Bulkhead took out any of them that where stupid enough to expose themselves. Be it a servo, arm, or even a bit of their pede, he shot at it with accuracy that only came from thousands of years worth of combat experience. And Voidwalker picked off and stragglers that didn't go down the first time.

It was a very efficient system that began to quickly whittle down the cons attacking forces. Starscreams occasional air strikes added to this as well… But in fact, it was during Starscreams strafing run that things took a turn for the worse.

A sudden streak of fire and smoke screamed through the air and collided with the deep blue seeker's starboard wing. He let out a pained yell and fell out of the sky trailing smoke and fire behind him. The Autobots paused in their assault to watch as their comrade transformed and crashed to the ground. His right shoulder was smoking and sparking, with several servo motors exposed under his damaged armor.

**"Star-!" **Bee started to yell.

Several drones landed around the damaged Seeker, but did that intimidate Starscream? Pit no, he instead grabbed his now damaged blade from his right shoulder, set it ablaze in crimson energy, and charged at the drones. There was a brief exchange of fire and several flashes of bright red light… And every Drone fell to the ground in pieces while Starscream stood above their corpses unharmed.

**"-Scream…" **Bee finished with his optics wide.

Starscream looked at his comrades for but a brief moment, and then the sound of clapping caught everyone's attention. They all looked past their Starscream to see the original silver femme like Starscream standing atop the corpse of an offline Decepticon. He was giving a mock clap at his counterpart.

"Very impressive, taking out a handful of drones." he mocked, a slimy grin adorning his faceplate. Star (The Autobots Starscream) looked at Screamer with a heavy scowl.

Screamer just chuckled at it, "Really though, it's nothing more than sad. You're fighting a losing battle Autobots. Look around you, really look around. You might be surprised."

Blinking at the Decepticons proclamation, the Autobots did just that. Bee felt his optics go wider, the Energon drained from Bulkheads faceplate, Starscream scowled, and Voidwalker clenched her talons together. Dozens if not hundreds of Decepticon drones, some the new Dark Energon variant, some the standard, had them surrounded with their blasters pointed at the Autobots.

The pure number of drones setting them easily at a twenty to one ratio when compared to the Autobots. They just couldn't hope to ever counter that many drones at once. Screamer let out an insane cackle at the expressions on the Autobots faceplates.

"Yes, you see now, you never stood a chance of lasting against us, Autobots!" his laughter immediately ended and he pointed his missile at his blue counterpart.

"Now, lay down your weapons, or perish."

* * *

Within the depths of Darkmount, Arcee, Jazz, Kara, and Miko where rushing through the darkened purple halls of the fortress. After Kara had revealed that the Decepticons didn't have Jack, the group had decided their next best course of action was to leave Darkmount behind. The problem was that Jazz didn't have an Earth vehicle form.

It wasn't because he didn't want one (On the contrary, he couldn't wait to scan one of them.), but rather time had prevented him from it. So Jazz and Arcee were forced to run through the halls while carrying their smaller organic companions. Jazz was carrying Miko while Arcee carefully held Kara.

And at that exact moment, Kara was pretty much stewing in feelings of self loathing. It was obvious to the girl that the reason Arcee was there was to rescue Jack, after all the two where a couple. But instead of finding him, she'd just found his injured sister. Understandable, Kara felt pretty lousy.

Though the steady thrum of Arcee running definitely wasn't helping, since Kara's hand still hurt like hell. She tried keeping it steady, but every jostle or jolt made Kara wince and bite back the occasional groan of pain.

"Hey, you alright?" Arcee asked all of a sudden.

Kara blinked and looked up at Arcee, "I'm…fine. My hand just hurts…"

Arcee shook her head, "Not what I meant. You have that look on your face that means your brooding." she explained.

"I… what?" Kara asked. She didn't have a brooding face, did she?

A small smile extended across Arcee's faceplate, "You and Jack both make the same face when your brooding."

"What? No we don't!" Kara protested.

Their group came to a corner and Jazz peered around it. He gave Arcee the all clear a moment later and they hurried on their way. Arcee chuckled at the indignant look on Kara's face, "Yes, you do. Trust me on that Kara. You both get this really spaced out look on your faces when you do."

"I…well…" Kara tried and failed to protest Arcee's accusation.

The femme chuckled again, "Let me guess. You're blaming yourself for being here instead of Jack?"

"How did-"

"Kara." Arcee gave the girl a serious look.

Kara sighed and let her shoulders droop, "Jack's always connected with you guys better than I have. He grew up on Earth without me and everyone always looked to him for protection, advice, or just as a friend… I've just sort of been in the background."

Arcee tapped her chin with a free servo. Their group passed through a door and continued on their way, "Well, that's not true Kara. You've helped us out a lot on the technical side. You built Raf's armor, helped Miko when she was knocked into a coma, and helped Jack take care of Krypto. You might not be as 'heroic' as Jack, but you still have a place on the team."

A furious blush crossed over Kara's face, "Now you're just making scrap up."

"No, I'm not." Arcee assured her, before smirking, "Plus, you're the only person I know who could get Voidwalker to come out of her shell."

Kara giggled, "Well, me and Optimus."

Arcee arched an optic ridge, "Pardon?"

"Wait, you didn't know?" Kara giggled louder, "Void and Optimus are an item!"

"What!?" Miko yelped from Jazz's servos. Even Jazz had paused to stare at Kara incredulously.

A big grin spread over Kara's face, "Seriously, none of you knew?"

"Well, I just got here." Jazz pointed out with a shrug, "But it's good to know the Boss Bot's branching out. Never thought it'd be with a femme like Void though."

"Yeah." Miko agreed, "She seems a bit too 'seriously deadly' to be his type."

"But they are." Kara insisted, "I sort of saw the two of them together. They just aren't that good at… romance."

That made everyone chuckle, "You don't say?" Arcee asked, "The two stiffest bots on our team bad at romance, what where the odds?"

Kara smiled at that, her brooding thoughts forgotten for the moment. And little did she know, that was exactly Arcee's plan. Yes the femme was upset that Jack wasn't there, but she knew that it wasn't Kara's fault and that blaming her wouldn't accomplish anything but drive a wedge between their team.

Their group reached another locked door and Jazz began hacking it. Arcee looked around the halls with a blaster at the ready, "How much longer until we're out of this place?" she whispered.

Jazz shrugged, "No idea. If things go smoothly, a few minutes and a door or two."

The door silently slid open to expose a dozen Vehicons all lead by the bright red Decepticon Knockout. Both sides stared at each other in shock, neither making a move towards the other. Arcee then gave Jazz a deadpan look, "How long now?"

"Ten, fifteen minutes, tops." Jazz shrugged.

Knockout suddenly yelled and pointed a servo at the bots, "Get them now, or Megatron will have all our heads!"

Not wanting to face their lords wrath, the Decepticons opened fire on the Autobots. They took cover behind the door frame and set their respective organic companions down. Then they changed their servos to blasters.

"Stay here." they both ordered. And then went charging forward to meet Knockouts soldiers. Kara watched as the two of them tore into the army of cons with practiced ease, an anxious expression on her face.

She was eager to get out of there for sure, but something felt off. This seemed to easy for them. Why did Knockout have so few drones with him? And why was it only Knockout, where was… A cold sweat broke out on Kara's face.

"Oh scrap no!" she hissed and looked down the hall they had come from.

Shockwave was marching down the hall at a leisurely pace. About a dozen of Megatrons new soldiers (Omni-cons if memory served her) marched behind him. They had their blasters raised at the Autobots, and before Kara or Miko could say a word, opened fire on the Autobots engaged with Knockouts forces…

* * *

Ironhide had lived a long time, seen or experienced quite a few number of things. He'd seen the war begin on Cybertron, watched as a lowly archivist rose up and became a Prime, saw Cybertron itself slowly die and even saw Primus gift Optimus with the Matrix of Leadership. It was safe to say that Ironhide had experienced quite a bit…

But a fifty foot tall mech juiced up on Dark Energon beating the ever loving scrap out of him like it was his favorite past time? Yeah, that was a new one for the mech. And really, it was a colossal understatement.

Scourge had been beating Ironhide for the past fifteen minutes without pause. Ironhide felt stars explode in his vision before he went flying across the hall, leaving skid marks in the steel plating. He came to a rest at one of the buttresses that were set at a consistent pattern in Decepticon architecture.

Ironhide groaned and tried pushing himself up despite the pain he felt. His entire chassis was littered with dents, cuts, and tears in his armor. Energon dripped from his many wounds and sparks flew from his joints. One of his optics kept twitching and refused to stop. The other was half dead and he could barely see out of it.

"Hehehe." Scourge boomed, his massive form looming over Ironhide, "Where's your big tough act now, Autobot?"

His taloned servos wrapped around Ironhide's pede, crushing the plating as if it where nothing but cardboard. Scourge casually dragged Ironhide towards him, pulling his free servo back. Ironhide's optics went wide while Scourge's optics smirked at him.

"You put up a good fight, but you where outmatched from the start." Scourge drawled. His massive servo tightened into a fist.

"I ain't done yet, con." Ironhide spat, which only made Scourge laugh.

Ironhide scowled and shifted his left servo into his secondary weapon. The Path Blaster. Designed initially as the Cybertronian equivalent of a pistol, Ironhide had made quite a few modifications to the weapon. Now, not only was it equipped with shells that where superheated to 3,000 degrees, but was capable of firing them as fast as Ironhide could will it to fire. With a Path Blaster in hand, Ironhide had wiped out hundreds of cons in the past.

He held no illusions about its capabilities against Scourge. The con had survived three thermo missiles to the face and came out no worse for wear. But at the very least, Ironhide reasoned while bringing Scourges head in his sights, the shot would distract him long enough for Ironhide to put some distance between the two of them.

Realization briefly passed over Scourges faceplate, but it was too little too late. The mechanism in Ironhide's Path Blaster clicked into place. There was a thundering boom and a single round went spinning out of the barrel towards Scourges exposed optic. The shell collided with the violet neon orb and effortlessly passed through the glass and cybernetics.

Scourge reared back in pain, clutching at his optic and letting out far too many curses to name. Ironhide rolled onto his stomach and got to his pedes. His legs where far too shaky for their own good, but Ironhide powered on through the pain and waves of weakness he was feeling. And while Scourge was busy grabbing at his optic, Ironhide used the momentary distraction to lead Scourge away from the Fusion cannons.

Now, Ironhide had hoped that Scourge's new injury would buy him two or three minutes to put some distance between them, or at least let Ironhide get himself prepped for another round with the big guy. But, as is typical of those in chaotic situations, they oh so rarely get what they want.

It took less than twenty seconds for Scourge to stop clutching at his optic and to glare at Ironhide with a fury and rage that would have made Megatron pause, "Oh scrap." Ironhide cursed and started sprinting away from Scourge.

"GET BACK HERE YOU PINT SIZED PIECE OF SCRAP!" Scourge bellowed and charged after Ironhide.

"Scrap scrap scrap!" Ironhide spared a glance over his shoulder and saw Scourge quickly gaining at him, moving at a speed that shouldn't have been possible with his massive bulk.

The entire section of the fortress trembled under Scourges heavy foot falls. Ironhide quickly realized that he was _not _going to outrun Scourge, so he turned around (and backpedaling as fast as he could without tripping) and shifted his right and left servos into the Path Blaster and Thermo Rocket Launcher respectively.

Aiming both weapons at Scourge, Ironhide fired off a trio of missiles at Scourge while hammering down on the firing mechanism for his Path Blaster. His jaw promptly dropped when Scourge turned his shoulder forward and absorbed the impact of the first missile, running through the smoke and fire with nary a scratch on him. He ducked under the second missile, and _grabbed _the third missile, throwing it down another hall. It detonated into a ball of fire that shook the hall once again.

Ironhide stumbled back into a wall and found himself cornered by Scourge. Who didn't stop his charge and barreled right into Ironhide. The red mech yelled when Scourge hit him, feeling several plates of armor shattering under the blow while his entire chassis screamed in protest against Scourge slamming against him.

And then the wall he was being pushed against suddenly groaned and creaked. It took both of the mechs a split second for them to realize what was happening. And then the wall collapsed and they both went tumbling out of the hallway. Ironhide hit an outstretched metal platform with a loud thud, and lay there groaning to himself.

Scourge landed with his knees bent, and left two large dents in the same platform. The entire platform was engulfed in a nearly unbearable heat. They had landed on one of the platforms overlooking Darkmount. Scourge spared a glanced over the edge of the platform and saw a pit of molten slag boiling below.

A sickening gleam shone in his remaining optic, and he turned to Ironhide. The bot was gasping for air and trying to move. Scourge started walking over to him and started to chuckle. It was a disturbing sound that made a part of Ironhide shiver.

A large shadow fell over Ironhide and he looked up to see Scourge's clawed hand descending towards him. Ironhide weakly lifted his Path Blaster again. Scourge crushed it in his servo without breaking a sweat.

Static flashed across Ironhides vision and a warning sign began to flash across his HUD. Scourge dug his talons into Ironhide's chestplate, tearing through the armor plating with ease, "Ah, yes… I was wondering what would break first…"

Scourge lifted Ironhide high into the air with a single arm, "Your mind, or your body?"

"Get fragged." Ironhide growled, and spat Energon onto Scourges faceplate.

Scourge ignored it, instead taking vicious pleasure in what he did next. He slammed Ironhide face first into the ground, and then slammed his pede onto the bots head. Ironhide let out a pained yell and Scourge purred with delight.

"Ah, look at you now Ironhide. Broken and gasping for breath." he increased his pressure on Ironhides helm for a moment, and then removed his pede. His servo engulfed the bots helm and wrenched it back up so his optics where staring into Scourges own.

"But you don't get to go yet." Scourge promised, "When the Autobots are in ashes, then you have my permission to die."

He spread his claws wide and a moment later something sharp stabbed into Ironhides midsection. His optics went wide and the bot let out a scream of pain.

* * *

"You've lost, Optimus Prime!" Megatron bellowed and opened fire on the Prime. Optimus hunched behind the terminal he was using as cover while Megatron tried to pin him down.

When he came across Megatron, a brief skirmish had unfolded that lead to the destruction of Megatrons personal guard. They currently lay in pieces across the command center where the Fusion Cannons where controlled, and now it was just Megatron and Optimus. And right now Megatron had the advantage, both in their own skirmish and with the rest of his team.

Optimus had received a flood of reports over his comm. channel from his Autobots. Megatron's forces had overwhelmed them all. Voidwalker and her squad where fighting desperately but where going to be overrun within the next few minutes. Arcee and Jazz where stuck engaging Shockwave and Knockout, and Ironhide had last been seen fighting off Scourge. Optimus wasn't sure what had happened to him.

Megatron cackled and fired at Optimus relentlessly, while also slowly stalking towards the Primes position, "For nearly a year you had my forces on the ropes, but you never seized the advantage. Your mistake was letting us escape each and every time. That is why I will ultimately win Optimus Prime. I am strong, while you are so weak!"

Optimus scowled behind his faceplate and clenched his coal black servos, "Perhaps, Megatron. Perhaps I was weak in allowing you mercy. In allowing you a chance to make up for your mistakes and redeem yourself. Know now that I have learned from my mistake. You must now pay for your crimes. That I promise you, Megatron."

The Decepticon warlord stopped next to Prime's cover with a smirk on his scarred faceplate, "You amuse me Optimus. And tell me, who will make me pay for these crimes. You?" he pointed his fusion cannon at the terminal.

"That was the idea." Optimus growled. His heavy pedes dug into the ground, and he whirled out from his cover. With his pede dug into the steel floor, his fist flew towards Megatron's surprised faceplate, slamming into it with the force of a freight train.

Dark Energon flew from Megatron's sickened mouth, and he stumbled away from Optimus. The Prime didn't let him get away though, and charged forward. Megatron barely had time to react as Optimus began hammering away at him with a series of lightning flash blows to his faceplate and sides where his armor was at its weakest.

Megatron tried to blink the Dark Energon out of his optics, feeling the substance dripping into them from a small cut on his faceplate. Optimus delivered an uppercut to Megatron, knocking a few sharpened denta loose. Then, he grabbed Megatron around the neck and wrenched him to the ground in a headlock.

For his part, Megatron was completely caught off guard by Optimus's sudden ruthless assault. Only during the time of Brainiacs arrival had Optimus fought so efficiently and brutally. And that was what enraged Megatron. He would not lose to the false Prime! Not again!

"GRAAGGH!" Megatron howled and stabbed his sharpened servos into Optimus's side. The gesture caught Prime off guard and he released Megatron with a howl of pain.

Megatron rubbed at his throat for a brief moment before snarling at Optimus and tackling him. There was a flurry of motion between the two. In the end, Megatron wrenched Optimus's arm behind him and slammed him against the command center view screen on one of the terminals. Multiple camera views showed outside of Megatrons fortress, including the battles going on between Optimus' forces and Megatrons.

"Tell me Optimus." Megatron pulled harder on Optimus' arm, "What do you see?"

Optimus didn't answer. What he saw was enough. Voidwalker and her squad had their arms raised in surrender and where on their knees. Starscream was preparing their execution. A view screen of the smelting pits showed Scourge with a battered and beaten Ironhide, prepared to fling him into the smelting pit. And the last one showed Arcee and Jazz being surrounded by the Decepticons while still fighting ferociously. He could have sworn he saw Kara and… Miko involved with them.

Optimus was silent as the realization slowly hit him. They had lost, the Autobots where beaten. Megatron was simply too prepared and outnumbered them. The Autobots would die there, and Megatron would conquer the Earth with no one to stop him. The Kryptonian and human races would both be wiped out…

And there was nothing Optimus could do. Megatron laughed with sick glee at the same time as Optimus realized this, "That's right Optimus. You have lost, your soldiers will all die because of you. How utterly pathetic."

Optimus optics fell for a moment. He desperately wracked his mind for a way out of this situation. Something or some way out of this situation that could keep his men, his team safe. But no matter what he thought of… There was no way out. Nothing short of a miracle could save them.

The great Prime let out a small sigh, "I concede Megatron. You've bested me. All that I ask is that you allow my team to go free. They followed me here, but I ultimately pushed them to this."

It was a desperate plea Optimus knew, but he hoped that somewhere in Megatrons twisted spark that there might be a tiny spec of mercy left. When Megatron laughed loudly, Optimus knew that there was no such thing in the warlord.

"How noble Optimus, sacrificing yourself to defend your Autobots. But it is in vain." he flung Optimus to the ground and slammed his pede on his chest plate with an audible crunch.

Optimus winced in pain, and then saw Megatron pointing his Fusion Cannon at his head. Its inside was flaring bright purple and humming ,"I would normally let you watch as I execute your team Prime." Megatron admitted, before giving a sickening grin, "But I think executing you now will be just as rewarding. Any last words?"

Prime stared down Megatrons cannon for a moment, deciding to be defiant to the end… Until he saw something quickly approaching the command center. The C&C was built in a circular pattern with windows in between each terminal and one massive reactor in the middle that powered it all.

Through one of those windows, Optimus saw a bit of fire and smoke rapidly approaching the C&C as fast as it could. It took but a moment for Optimus to realize what it was. And when he did, a smile spread over his faceplate behind his battle mask.

"Just one, Megatron." the Prime admitted, "Duck."

Megatron raised an optic ridge, "What are you…" he turned around in time to see the missile come streaking through the window, shattering it, and colliding with his chest plate. There was an explosion of shrapnel and Megatron was sent flying into the reactor.

Electricity arched across the warlords chassis and he screamed in pain. Scorch marks raced up and down his body and smoke rose from the ends of his frame. Optimus heaved himself up and noted the smell of burnt metal that drifted through the air. He spared Megatron an almost sympathetic look before the reactor exploded into a tiny bolt of energy that sent Megatron flying down the hall.

He crashed and landed in an undignified heap on the floor with smoke rising from his charred body. Optimus didn't spare him a second look, instead glancing out the shattered window in time to see a familiar square shaped ship zoom by underneath the C&C.

Optimus put a servo to his comm. "Excellent timing, Wheeljack." he praised.

A rough and gruff voice crackled over the comm. in response, _"Just doin my job Prime. Oh, and I picked up a friend on the way over."_

Optimus looked at the view screen and watched as the Wrecker Wheeljack's ship, The Jackhammer, streaked around Darkmount once, twice, three times before the rear hatch split open. Steam shot out from the rear, Wheeljack's 'partner', but he was not what Optimus noted.

A dark blue and gold chassis also jumped out of the rear of the vessel and transformed before streaking down towards Voidwalker and her squad…

* * *

Scourge watched in shock as the C&C was suddenly assaulted with a large missile and a Cybertronian ship streaked by overhead, "What is this!?" he demanded angrily.

Ironhide let out a choked laugh, "Guess…someone called in the cavalry Scourge… hehe."

The massive con turned back to Ironhide with a snarl, "No matter, you will perish either way."

"That so?" Ironhide asked with a lazy smirk. A moment later there was a sound of shifting metal and a sharp pain in Scourges arm.

He held up against the pain for a brief moment, before releasing Ironhide and howling. Scourge clutched at his injured arm and fell to his knees, cradling it with one servo. Ironhides sword as stabbed deep into the muscle chords and had pierced the vein of Dark Energon attached to it.

His violet optics flicked to the hacking Ironhide. Violet rage filled his vision, and he ripped the blade out of his arm, "I'll rip your spark out for that!" he declared, and stood to his full impressive height of fifty feet…

Which made him an easy target for the Jackhammer's twin rocket launchers. Scourge only had time to see the vessel screaming towards him, before two shafts of smoke slammed into him and knocked him flying off of Darkmount to the ground below, with charred pieces of armor falling behind him.

Ironhide let out a weak chuckle while the Jackhammer landed in front of him with a low hiss. The rear slid open and a familiar white, red, and green bot came running out. Wheeljack in all his scar faced glory had come to save the day.

When he saw Ironhide, the biggest grin possible spread over his face, "Shoot, Commander? I thought you where offline." he chuckled.

Ironhide propped himself up on his good arm and hacked up a bit of Energon, "Glad to hear you're concerned Wheeljack. Now make yerself useful and help me into your ship!"

Wheeljack gave a lazy salute, "Aye aye, sir." he knelt down next to Ironhide and wrapped one arm around his neck. He got to his feet and half dragged Ironhide to his ship.

"So, when you'd get to Earth?" Wheeljack asked.

Ironhide half coughed half laughed, "Long story kid. Lets help the others out first."

Wheeljack shrugged, "Alright, you're the boss."

* * *

Down in the depths of Darkmount, Arcee, Jazz, Miko, and Kara found themselves surrounded by Decepticons lead by Shockwave and Knockout. The latter had a nasty cut on the shoulder of his armor, but really was in fine condition. Arcee and Jazz though where… scorched. Covered in burns from the dozens of cons that had overwhelmed them.

And now they were on their knees while Shockwave towered over them, his cannon pointed at Arcee's head, "Your first mistake." he emotionlessly informed her, "Was attempting to infiltrate Lord Megatrons compound. Your second, was stealing my test subject."

"I'm not your test subject." Kara growled silently. Not much she could do though besides that. Her powers where gone, and Miko had thrown out her voice trying to even the playing field. It hadn't worked.

Shockwave's cannon charged up while Arcee glared defiantly at him, "You will not be remembered." he promised her.

And then, before anyone could react, several pillars of light shone through the hall, catching the Decepticons and Autobots off guard. Realization hit Kara and Knockouts faceplates from the pillars of light.

Knockout groaned, "Oh no…"

Kara grinned, "Yes!"

And Shockwave? He was just confused. The beams of light all merged together into one beam where they coalesced and exploded outwards. Several streaks of light tore through the drones as though their armor was so much tissue paper. Shockwave was knocked back by the… shockwave, and Knockout went running for cover.

When the light cleared, a tall individual stood there clad in elaborate white and gold armor. He was easily eight feet tall and had massive wings formed of pure energy sprouting from his back. A silken white hood covered his face, though he actually had no face to speak of.

Kara's heart hammered in her chest and she couldn't help but smile, "Malthanis! You came!"

Malthanis was the closest equivalent to an Angel one would ever meet, hailing from a place called the High Heavens, he had come to Earth to study humans. The angelic being had encountered Kara a few months back during an emotional time for the girl. He had helped her and Jack take Knockout down rather easily, and afterwards the angel had left to explore Earth on his own and learn more of humans. From there he occasionally helped out the Autobots from time to time, until he partnered up with Wheeljack.

The big angel looked at Kara, _**"I apologize for the late arrival. But I suggest we leave quickly. Human jets are on their way as we speak. They will not wait to fire on us." **_

Exchanging looks, Jazz just shrugged, "Hey, fine by me. This place was getting dull anyway."

The Autobots scooped the organics up and the group made a run for the exit…

* * *

"What is going on up there!?" Starscream bellowed angrily, seeing the explosion that hit Darkmount, but not knowing what caused it.

Bulkhead and Bee exchanged looks from their position on the ground and smirked, "You know, for the life of me Bee, I can't find a reason to be upset. Can you?"

**"Nope." **Bee chuckled.

Void just wore a smirk while Screamer started stammering angrily. Star looked up at the fortress and smirked, "I do not think that is your greatest worry." he noted.

Screamer blinked, "What?" and looked to see a dark blue and gold jet streaking towards him. His faceplate went pale and his knees started shaking. He nearly started leaking lubricant on the spot.

Instead, he pointed an accusing servo at the jet, "Don't just stand there! Shoot it! Shoot it!" he ordered, all while slowly backing up on his stiletto heeled pedes.

The drones turned and did just that. A hail fire of red blaster fire sought to engulf the jet, but instead it just weaved and dodged around each bolt of Energon with practiced ease. And then, it opened fire on them. Explosions ripped into the ranks of Decepticons, which began running about in terror trying to get to cover.

The fire lessened on the jet, and its speed increased. Screamer let out a scream of terror and began to run. The jet streaked in front of him though, twisting in mid air and transforming. A heavy form landed in front of Starscream, who skid to a stop and started blubbering in fear.

The figure standing up before him was tall and broad, covered in deep blue armor plating, with golden highlights. He had a sharp gold faceplate with large piercing red optics that stared down accusingly at Starscream.

Bulkhead's jaw dropped, "Dreadwing!? Your alive!?"

Starscream cowered under the seekers glare, "Oh, I am most assuredly alive." Dreadwing growled, his sharpened servos grinding together, "I nearly rushed aboard the Nemesis to take revenge for my brother who's grave you desecrated, 'commander'." he snarled at Starscream.

The smaller silver seeker let out a squeak of terror, and Dreadwing let out a snort, "But I realized that patience was my best option. And now, you are all mine Starscream."

The giant blue and gold seeker unsheathed a hilt from his side and it quickly extended into a long silver broadsword that he wielded between his servos. Starscream jumped back in fear, "Wait! You can't do this, Megatron would never allow it!"

Dreadwing paused only for a moment, and then his scowl deepened. Starscream's wings drooped in fear, "My liege, Lord Megatron. The one who lied to me of my brothers fate, and allowed his murderer and desecrater to live!? THAT Lord Megatron!?" Dreadwing bellowed angrily.

It was at this point that Starscream lost all self control, and promptly began leaking lubricant. He knew he was doomed, there was no way that Dreadwing would spare him now. It would take nothing short of a miracle for him to-

Then Starscream's remaining drones opened fire on Dreadwing. While the seeker cursed angrily, Starscream took it as his chance to transform and fly as fast as he could towards the Nemesis as he could. All the while trailing a stream of lubricant behind him. With him gone though, the remaining Autobots got back to their feet and quickly helped Dreadwing finish off the remaining drones.

When they were done, only a few scattered remains where left. The Jackhammer approached their group, and in the distance they could see Arcee and Jazz approaching as well. The Jackhammer landed before the Autobots and its rear hatch split open, letting Optimus walk out.

The Autobots looked at their leader. The sound of human jets where thundering over the horizon, Darkmount would fall any minute, "Autobots." Optimus boomed over their comm.

"Prepare to fall back."

**A/N: Abrupt ending, I know. But hey! Dreadwings alive! How many of you saw THAT coming, eh? Heck, how many of you expected all of this to happen, show of hands? Let me know in the reviews guys, and I hope to have another chapter out tomorrow.**

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and remember to review and PM me with questions! Bye!**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: What Now?

_Camp Pendleton, California…_

The trip back to the temporary Autobot base was not an easy one. With a good chunk of the team injured in some way, and Ironhides ship destroyed, they'd been forced to pile into the Jackhammer. Wheeljack's personal ship barely managed to get them back to Camp Pendleton, listing dangerously all the while.

When they did finally return to the human military base, they came back to a hero's welcome. Every refugee, the majority of who where former inhabitants of Jasper Nevada, or Autobot sympathizer, had gathered around the landing ship to overwhelm the conquering heroes with cheers and praise.

Darkmount had fallen under a combined missile assault from human jets yes, but it was the Autobots that made such a victory possible. The spire had fallen from its great height, and was now nothing but smoking wreckage spread across the Nevada landscape. The remaining Decepticons had retreated aboard the Nemesis to limp off and lick their wounds.

The Autobots knew that this was not a permanent defeat for the cons. Optimus knew that Megatron still lived, and with the Nemesis still functioning, it wouldn't be long before the cons became a threat again. It was time for them to take advantage of their temporary victory and rebuild while they could.

It had taken several minutes for the bots to get past the cheering humans and arrive at the motor pool, their now temporary base. Several US soldiers made sure the block the area off so that the bots weren't swarmed with humans, much to their relief.

Arcee let out a tired sigh once they left the crowds behind them, and knelt down on one knee. Optimus set Voidwalker down leaning against a troop transport, while Bulkhead and Wheeljack helped Ironhide over to Ratchet. Out of all of the Autobots, he had taken the fiercest beating from Scourge. His head hung loosely and his optics where dead; Ironhides systems had forced him into stasis lock.

Raf ran up to his guardian and Bumblebee knelt down in front of his tiny human friend, "You alright?" the young boy asked worriedly.

**"I'm fine." **Bee beeped, **"Really, it's the others you should be worried about…"**

Starscream limped off on his own, brushing Ratchet off when he tried to look at his injured shoulder. He found a somewhat abandoned garage and sat under it where he sat down, venting quietly.

The other new seeker in the group, Dreadwing, stood off in the background, staring off into the distance with a thoughtful expression on his faceplate. What he was thinking about, no one could guess. The con was an enigma to the bots, though most of them had assumed he was dead…

Jazz let Miko down from his servo's, giving Bulkhead an apologetic look. The big green gave Miko a scolding look. The girl shrugged helplessly and Bulkhead just shook his head. There were other things to focus on besides Miko doing something stupid… as usual.

From her kneeling position, Arcee lowered her arms and gently let Kara down from her servos. The young Kryptonian stood on shaky legs for a moment before they steadied. Ever since they entered the sunlight, color had slowly returned to Kara's skin and she seemed to be getting stronger.

Arcee figured that she'd be back at full strength soon. She smiled slightly when Kara undid her makeshift cast and flexed her broken left hand. Jack had once told Arcee that Kryptonians had an advanced healing factor while under the yellow sun. And it seemed that it had worked at full strength to give her control back over her hand.

Good thing too, because no less than a second passed after Kara touched down, then a giant white blur slammed into her, "GAGH! Krypto!" she squealed, trying to keep the giant white husky from bathing her with his tongue. She didn't really succeed.

The others laughed lightly at the spectacle while Kara eventually got Krypto to back off of her. The big white dog sat on his haunches and let out a small whine. Kara smiled and scratched under his chin, "Good boy Krypto." she praised.

Then she looked at Arcee confused, "Why didn't you bring Krypto along to help?"

"Megatron's new troops." she shrugged in response, "We didn't want to risk the Dark Energon weakening him. A weakened Kryptonian is already in enough danger. Imagine how it would've been for someone as protective as Krypto?"

Kara thought for a moment, scratching Krypto behind the ear while she did. After a moment of thinking, she nodded, "That makes sense to me…"

The motor pool grew quiet suddenly, and for good reason. June had quietly walked up next to Krypto and was gently stroking the shaggy dog's back. Kara ducked her head and wore a guilty expression on her face. Jack was June's son, (Even if he was technically adopted) and Kara just so happened to be his sister… that June and Jack hadn't even known existed until nearly a year ago.

The expression on June's face was an unreadable one to the bots, but she was putting off an air of… pain. Lots of pain. The other bots looked around awkwardly while June continued to stroke Krypto. Kara kept her eyes averted, afraid of her brothers adopted mother and how she might react to the news…

Finally, June spoke in a soft voice, "…Where's Jack?"

Voidwalker, Arcee, Bulkhead, Starscream, and finally Optimus exchanged looks. The great Prime closed his optics and vented. He then quietly walked up to June and knelt down so he wasn't towering over her. Even then, he easily dwarfed the woman… and yet he seemed more afraid of her than she was of him.

"Mrs. Darby…" Optimus started. His tone was slow and careful, because truthfully… he didn't know how to say that they couldn't find Jack. He was honestly afraid that it might push June over the edge. She had been incredibly strong until the assault, holding out because she was expecting her son to be rescued by the Autobots.

But they came back only with Kara. Optimus feared her reaction could be dangerous to herself. Which is why it surprised him when June raised a hand, "He wasn't there, was he?" her voice was very tight.

The Prine's optics fell, "He was not."

Kara tightened her hand on Krypto's collar. The dog whimpered and nuzzled Kara gently. She stroked his muzzle for a moment, and then sighed, "I'm sorry June… the Decepticons only captured me… they never found Jack."

June's expression was still impossible to read. Utterly impassive except for a few crinkles around her eyes and mouth, "I see…" she said.

"We tried to find him, we really did." Arcee suddenly insisted, "But the cons never found him, I swear June."

The femme flashed back to an event from months ago that had once seemed so trivial, but was now at the forefront of her mind. A promise Arcee had made to June that she wouldn't hurt Jack… a promise she had broken.

June still remained impassive, looking at the Autobots, "I…understand… When you do find Jack though, I want to know." she informed them.

Her eyes fell on Kara, "But until then, I'll do what I can for my family that is here. Come on Kara."

"W-what!?" Kara yelped in surprise. The other Autobots looked equally as surprised by June's proclamation. They had expected the woman to be _very _emotional from this.

Miko leaned over next to Raf, "You think she snapped?"

"No, now shhh." Raf ordered quietly.

Both kids turned their attention back to June, who many of the bots where gaping at, "Y-you're alright with this!?" Bulkhead yelped in surprise.

June turned her gaze on him and sighed, "No, I'm not Bulkhead. But I'll be honest with you all. I'm sick of this, all of this. I'm sick of the Decepticons, I'm sick of people trying to hurt my son, and I'm sick of everyone acting like they know how I think. They don't. I just want my son back, okay? I want my family back together, and I know when I'm out of my league. I watched Metallo tear Jack apart, okay? I know there are things out of my control, and yelling at you wouldn't accomplish anything."

She put a hand on Kara's shoulder, "I have half of my family back now, and I want the other half back. All I'm asking for Optimus is that you find Jack. Okay? That's all I want."

A very, very small smile spread over Optimus' faceplate and he nodded, "Of course, Mrs. Darby. Once my Autobots have recovered, we will initiate a search effort for Jackson."

June smiled, "Thank you Optimus. That's all I could ask for."

The woman turned on Kara, "Now," she poked her in the chest, "You, with me. You've just spent several days as a Decepticon prisoner. I'm going to make sure everything's still in place."

"But-" Kara started to protest.

June interrupted her, "I know more about Kryptonian biology than any human on Earth, and Ratchet is busy with the others. You might know more than me, but you don't have the trained eye of a nurse Kara. And even your healing factor isn't perfect."

Kara's shoulder slumped slightly, but she nodded at June, "Okay…"

"Good." June smiled and gently lead the girl off, leaving the Autobots alone.

There was a brief moment of silence following June's departure, mostly because the bots where stunned. June had been very calm through the whole situation since Jasper was destroyed… and it was slightly unnerving. Optimus could understand it though. She had seen Jack put himself into danger so often that she understood events like this where bound to happen, and that there wasn't anything she could do about it.

And for that, he could actually respect June for it. It took a great deal of maturity to admit when one couldn't help in a situation, especially when it came to family. June was just trying to help the best way she could, even though how she could help was… very small.

"She sure has changed." Arcee stood back up next to Optimus, "Not the worry wart she used to be."

"Indeed." Optimus agreed. His optics narrowed slightly when he saw Fowler and Bryce pass by the June and Kara. The organics exchanged words for a moment, and then the two soldiers continued on towards the Autobots. Bryce wore an anxious expression, while Fowler was grinning like an idiot.

Optimus started forward and knelt down in front of the two. His Autobots didn't need to deal with whatever politics Bryce was coming to warn him, about if his expression was anything to go off of anyway.

"General Bryce, Agent Fowler." the Prime greeted.

"Optimus." Bryce gave a short nod. Fowler just kept grinning.

Optimus ignored it, "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"First," Bryce said quickly, "I wanted to say thank you for your service, and for disposing of the Decepticons. Things where looking pretty dark there for a moment."

A faint shiver ran through Optimus's frame. He knew how close things had come to failing. And it was only thanks to Wheeljacks impeccable timing that they had managed to salvage a victory from their near defeat. Of course, his partner (Who had mysteriously vanished for the moment) and Dreadwing had helped as well, but Wheeljack was the one who had brought them to Darkmount in the first place…

"You are welcome, General Bryce." Optimus said. He then narrowed his optics, "But I have a feeling there is more to this visit than merely thanks and congratulations."

Bryce frowned slightly, "That obvious huh?"

Optimus was silent.

Bryce sighed, "Alright, yeah. With Darkmount done for, the US military is working on relocating everyone misplaced by the Decepticon invasion. This includes the Autobots. The higher ups have decided to transfer the Autobots to a new base in San Diego. We're trying to make up for our previous actions. You're being given an entirely new base to operate out of."

The new wasn't as surprising to Optimus as one might've expected. He had suspected that Pendleton wouldn't remain as their base of operations for very long, and saw that he was correct in that assumption.

Optimus frowned though as he thought about the news, "When do you want us to transfer to this new base?" even though the Autobots weren't a military sect., they were subject to time frames and the like. After all, they couldn't just build a base wherever. The humans wouldn't really appreciate that.

"It's effective immediately." Bryce nearly grumbled. Obviously he didn't like that idea, "Finish up any repairs you need, and then head to the Coronado Military base. From there, you'll be taken to your new base of operations."

The Prime's frown deepened, "We have many wounded, General Bryce. It will take some time to move them all, and our resources would be better spent searching for Jackson."

"Leave that to us, Prime." Fowler interjected, his grin having finally died down somewhat, "You guys handled the cons for us, let us handle Jack for now. When you're settled in, we'll hand the operation over to you."

Optimus continued to frown, "Trust us." Fowler assured him, "Let the experts handle this."

"By experts, who do you mean exactly?" Optimus asked in response.

Fowler and Bryce exchanged nervous looks. Optimus's optics narrowed along with his frown. Who was looking for Jack? And why did he make Fowler and Bryce look so… nervous?

_Elsewhere…_

Somewhere along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, a lone structure rested along the beach. It was a large square warehouse with a small dock stretching out into the water. Rather unremarkable honestly, just a standard run of the mill warehouse to the average viewer. And in the pitch darkness of the night, it really did seem to just… vanish from view.

The perfect place to hide something valuable or dangerous from the public. Who would think to look somewhere so boring and generic? Problem was that hiding things in a warehouse was so cliched that honestly the man was surprised he hadn't realized its importance sooner.

Said man was hidden in the shadows along the road that stretched into the warehouse. The asphalt was cracked from years of abandonment, but recently wetted from a heavy rain that had only just let up hours ago.

A frigid wind blew across the nearly flat landscape, making the man pull his cloak tighter around himself. His breathing was slow and steady, so as to prevent any steam from puffing into the air. The man's pure white eyes looked up at the warehouse for a moment.

With no street lights lining the road, he didn't need to worry about cover. Blending into the shadows was a natural skill he had developed over the years. If he didn't want anyone to see him, he wasn't going to be seen. It was simple as that.

His boots where silent against the sand and dirt as he walked towards the warehouse. He'd found the location by tracing recent purchases made from Lexcorp. A buyer under the name 'Wilson' had purchased several suspicious items. Generators, high quality titanium alloys, and lead containers. Lots of lead containers.

Of course, such things wouldn't normally seem so suspicious had it not been for one thing. Items like that would work well on a Kryptonian to specifically cancel out some of their more renowned abilities. It was a long shot for sure, but he had so few leads that he was willing to take the gambit.

That was the thought process Batman had as he walked up to the warehouse. His gloved hand slipped into his dull yellow belt and wrapped around a grappler. If he was right though, then that meant one thing.

He'd be one step closer to finding Kal-El.

To finding Jack.

For the boy's sake, he sincerely hoped that he was right…

**A/N: I… hated this chapter. I just needed a short relaxing chapter, but this chapter hated me. I wanted to get it out yesterday, but things came up. But I got it up today, and I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter more than I did.**

**Now, onto more important information. Ol'Halloween is coming up guys, and if you know me at all, that means another Halloween special! But this time I'm a bit torn on what to choose. So, from now until the day of Halloween I'll be keeping a poll up on my profile so that you can choose one of three stories for me to do for Halloween.**

**And here's a shock, two of them aren't related to TFP at all! Whaaaa!? Yeah, that's right. They'll follow some general theme of Halloween, but don't expect great horror. The two non-crossover choices are Prototype and Danny Phantom. Eldritch Abomination or Ghosts. The third choice is a crossover, and it goes more for the gore factor of Halloween. What's the crossover? Transformers Prime and Splatterhouse! What's Splatterhouse? Oh… just look it up…**

**Anyway, don't forget to vote, and if you're curious about plots, ask via PM and I'll try to explain them. And if you have other possible ideas for a Halloween story, let me know! **

**Otherwise guys, leave reviews with critique on this chapter (Seriously, I need to know if my writing for this chapter was scrap or not), and PM me with questions and ideas! Bye!**


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